


Hello Stranger

by Bace_Jeleren



Category: Magic: The Gathering
Genre: Abusive Relationships, Alternate Universe - Real World, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-09
Updated: 2019-02-09
Packaged: 2019-10-24 20:13:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 23,481
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17710802
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bace_Jeleren/pseuds/Bace_Jeleren
Summary: Chandra Nalaar only wants two things: to forget her ex and to avoid falling into another relationship. The first is easy enough, but when Jace Beleren forces himself into her life, she finds it difficult to attain her second desire. Can she open her heart as well as her mind to what he has to offer her?





	1. Order Up

"Hey, guess who's here."

"I'd rather not. I'm really bad at guessing games."

"Oh, but I think you knooooow." My friend, Elspeth, smirks. She _knows_ I know. There's no one else she would draw my attention to. I mean, we see plenty a number of freaks and burnouts in this diner, but she'd never ask me to guess whether or not the odd druggie or drunkard is here. I really wish it were, though.

I sigh, smoothing out my apron and begin to exercise my plastic, kind waitress smile.

"Let me guess, he's asked specifically for me again, hasn't he?" I roll my eyes, reaching in and pulling out my pad of paper and reach over to steal the only pen on Elspeth's person out of the breast-pocket of her uniform.

"You know, I bet he fancies you, Chandra." She snickers. "Why do you act like that bothers you? How long has it been since you've been back on the market now? Three years? You should give the guy a chance."

"Why, because he comes in ever week or so and specifically asks for me just to order coffee?" I ask her sarcastically. "Oh yeah, if that's not a reason to try and jump a stranger's bones, I don't know what is."

"You know, sometimes I think Baral turned you into a lesbian the way you shrug off men the way you do." Elspeth complains. I shudder slightly, closing my eyes and trying to wash away the memories she's dredged up just by mentioning _his_ name. I'm honestly surprised I _didn't_ swear off men after him- after the hell he put me through before dropping me like a hot mess and left without even trying to clear up any of the bad blood between the two of us.

"Wanna test and see?" I ask her, leaning in so that our faces are dangerously close. I can smell her perfume and the smell of the cherry cigars she always smokes on her breath. She cocks an eyebrow and leans away slightly, a frown tugging on her lips, obviously not up for trying anything. I click my tongue and roll my eyes- Elspeth isn't even my type. How she dolls herself up, her taste for anything bright and adorable, her inability to stand anything without some sort of fruity flavor, her enthusiasm and optimistic attitude that are as wide and vast as the damn ocean- honestly I'm surprised we're as close as we are as it is. Maybe it's because we're the only two girls working the night shift at this old, dirty downtown diner, and we instinctively banded together. She needed someone tough who wouldn't try to take advantage of her and I needed someone who wasn't a creature with a penis.

"I'm kidding, idiot." I groan. "If anything, Baral probably turned me off relationships altogether."

"Christ, just go and take his order already." She mutters, her cheeks a brighter shade of red than the blush lightly dusted on them. "And be nice to him for once. The way you treat him I'm surprised he keeps coming back!"

"Hitting the nail kind of on the head there, Els." I chuckle as I finally push my way through the kitchen doors and slowly drift into the floor of the diner. It doesn't take long to find him, since he's the only person in the diner at three in the morning who isn't using their table as a pillow. He's been here plenty of times, but he still looks at the menu like it's fascinating and doesn't know what to order. I do, though. I've already written coffee on my pad of paper. I could honestly just have brought out a cup with me.

I don't know his name, since I've never bothered to ask and he doesn't have it pinned to his chest like I do. I just served him the first time he stopped in, and he's been asking for me ever since. His choice of clothing is on the very border of normal and strange. If you looked at him really fast, or caught a quick glimpse of him in a crowd you really wouldn't really see anything peculiar, but he dresses like an alien who's desperately trying to dress like a human. There's always some sort of piece of his outfit or an accessory that makes him look really out of place. He's also a really big fan of blue- and tonight, like every other night, he's wearing almost nothing but.

I'm a red girl myself. Blue's too calm, too quiet. It's the color people wear when try try to seem trustworthy and kind and all it only succeeds in making me suspicious.

"Ah, Chandra!" He pipes up as he looks up from his menu, smiling at me like we're good friends who haven't seen one another in a while. Only half of that is true: it's been a while since he's stopped by.

"Mm." I mumble, nodding at him and giving him a half-smile as I prepare to act like I'm writing his order. "What'll it be this time?"

"Just a coffee today." He says after a second thinking, like he really needed to.

"The usual then." I sigh.

"Heh, I guess it is the usual, huh?" He chuckles, sounding almost defeated. I don't even bother asking if he wants sugar or cream. I know he likes his coffee with just a little bit of milk.

The fact he makes up one of the only two men in my life who's taste in coffee I know really pisses me off. Maybe he realizes this and my nice, polite waitress act has begun to slip because he cocks his head like a curious parrot and raises an eyebrow.

"Is something the matter?"

"What? No, nothing, I was... just thinking if I left the stove on at home." I lie. I desperately want to tell him the truth- that whatever he's up to I'm not going to fall for it. Whatever he's after, coming in near the middle of my shift like clockwork and asking for me specifically, he isn't going to get it. He's kind and he's handsome and he doesn't freak me out like everyone else who comes to the diner at three in the damn morning, but so was Baral. I don't trust nice looking, kind, trustworthy guys any more.

"Well, here's to hoping it's not."

"R-right..." I nod before turning back toward the kitchen. I take large, fast steps so that it only takes me two seconds and only four steps to retreat behind the doors.

"Soooo?" Elspeth is waiting for me- she probably didn't even leave the place I'd left her. I mean, where else was she going to go? She leans in, ear facing me like she expects me to whisper a secret into it. I grunt in disapproval and press my palm against her head and push her away.

"So _what_? He want's coffee, so I'm getting him coffee so he can drink it and leave." I tell her, heading over to the pots of coffee patiently waiting on heaters. We advertise that every cup we make is fresh but that's a damn lie. We made these pots when I came into work hours ago.

"At least ask for his name, Chandra! Or his phone number or what he does for a living or the weather or _something_ ! I mean, you don't have any trouble small talking with other customers!" Elspeth complains, stamping her foot against the filthy kitchen tile.

"That's because all the other customers are here because they're drunk and have nowhere to go, or are getting out of work at the strip club down the street. They don't have some ulterior motive like this guy _clearly_ does. I know his type- he finds a cute, innocent waitress at a diner and asks for her by name to make her feel wanted and special and pretty." I snap, reaching for a coffee cup on the shelf above me only to have it slip from my hands and fall to the floor, shattering. "Fuck!"

"And what if he does? So what if he wants to try and lure you in? I know _a thousand_ other girls who'd fight for that kind of attention." Elspeth speaks in a scolding tone as she drops to the ground with me to try and pick up the pieces.

"Really? You know _that_ many girls?" I ask snarkily.

"Shut up, Chandra!" She groans. "What I'm trying to get at is that not all guys are Baral. You need to realize that or else you're going to live and die alone."

"What if I like being alone, huh?" I ask angrily, placing the broken mug pieces on the counter and grabbing another cup. "Maybe I like the silence and the security of knowing that I'll never get the chance to be hurt again. I gave Baral everything, Elspeth. I have nothing left to give."

"But-"

"Oh my god- but _nothing_!" I shout, pouring coffee into the off-white mug and furiously jamming the pot back into place on the heater. "This conversation is over!" I storm out of the kitchen, totally forgetting the milk. I hardly put any in anyway, I doubt he'll tell the difference. I'm also pretty sure I poured in decaff but- fuck, I don't even care any more. The sooner I serve him, the sooner I'll no longer be obligated to see him.

As soon as I throw open the kitchen doors, I'm greeted not by the sight of the almost-empty diner, but a body blocking my way. Surprise is quickly followed by horror and disgust when I realize who it is.

"B-Baral!?"

I can smell the alcohol on his breath and I can see that hazy, lustful look in his eyes. I've seen it before- so many, many times. So many times where I lied down and took it, so many times when I wished I had the will to leave him when we were still together. So many times when I forgave him.

"I figured you'd be working tonight." He murmurs in a voice I can't tell if he is either happy or angry to see me. "I needed to see you."

"Are you sure it's me you need to see? Or was it one of those other girls you were porking the last time we spoke?" I growl defensively. "I'm not in the mood, Baral, so get out before I get you thrown out."

"Look, I know I messed up, Chandra, but I can change, I swear! I'm a different man now!" He slurs.

"You're drunk, and that's not any different at all." I mutter, trying to step around him, but he blocks my path. I try the other way, but he does the same. He's so hulking gigantic it's near impossible to maneuver around him. "Can you please just move! We can do this whole song and dance another time- like when you're sober!"

"I came here to speak to you, the least you could do is listen!" He shouted.

"I have a job to do, and it doesn't involve listening to you try and woo me back when you're clearly too drunk to think rationally." I growl. "The last time we spoke, if you don't remember, you said you didn't want to see me again. Do you remember _that_!?"

"God, could you just shut up for a second and listen!" Before I can stop him, he grasps my arm and I accidentally drop the cup of coffee. The scream of glass seems to alert no one that I can see, at least. Everyone else is too tired or scared or drunk to intervene. The dark liquid pools around us as I nearly slip in it as I try to pull my arm out of Baral's tight grip.

"Baral! You're hurting me, stop!" I yell, flinching as he grasps me tighter. I can hear Elspeth in the kitchen, trying to find someone who has the balls to stand up to the wall of muscle that is Baral. "I said _let. GO!_ "

I honestly suspect a fight- a bruise on my arm and a scuffle to break out. I honestly suspect the mug to not be the only thing that would get broken. But, much to my surprise, Baral actually does what I ask and slowly lets me go. It's a miracle, and I can't help but stare up at him in open-mouthed surprise as I draw my arm close to my chest and rub where he'd clutched me. There's something about his eyes- they seem more glazed over than before. In fact, his entire expression has changed to a blank, indifferent look as he slowly backs away from me. Surprise turns into confusion as I watch him, trying to figure out what caused such a miracle.

Standing behind Baral is _him_ \- the guy who's name I don't even know, who I've been nothing but cold and distant to. His hands aren't anywhere on Baral, nor does it look like he has a weapon on his person. It doesn't look like he struck him and he obviously hasn't said a word. He's just watching him closely and following him with his eyes as he leaves the diner without a word. His lips are barely moving, but I can't here anything this mystery guy is saying.

What in the actual _fuck_ is going on exactly?

"Chandra!" Elspeth cries as she runs in from behind me, our manager in tow. "Are you-!" She looks around, donning a look of complete and utter confusion to match my own. "Where... Baral was just here! Where did he go!?"

"He realized how much of an ass he was making of himself and showed himself out." My nameless hero explains with a smile. "Thankfully the only damage he did was to your glassware."

"Thank god." My manager sighs. "I really should have told you he came around looking for you yesterday on your day off. I honestly didn't expect him to come back."

"I told you he would! I thought you told her!" Elspeth gasps before turning her attention to me.

"Chandra, are you okay? You sure he didn't hurt you?" Her hands are immediately all over my body, looking for injuries.

"He just... grabbed me really hard, that's all..." I mutter, looking down at my arm. There's a faint bruise from where he grabbed me, but that's not what concerns me. I look to my customer-turned-savior suspiciously, and he meets my gaze with forced innocence. He _knows_ I'm trying to figure him out, and doesn't want to make a scene about it.

"Well, your shift is nearly over. If you want, you can go home early if you're a bit too shaken up." My manager suggests, obviously feeling guilty he didn't mention Baral had stopped by before. And who am I to deny the chance to escape work a little early? I sigh, trying to make it look like I'm conflicted over getting to go home.

"I think it's best I throw in the towel tonight, boss." I speak wearily. "Sorry to leave you guys short handed..."

"It's fine, I think we'll be able to keep up." Elspeth laughs, patting me on the back.

"Sir, I really don't want to impose, but could you walk Chandra home?"

Wait a second... My manager is addressing the man who just saved me. I want to desperately say that I can see myself home. _Please, don't make decisions for me right in front of me, sir!_

"No problem at all. I mean, just in case that other guy comes back looking for her." He waves his hand dismissively. He speaks before I even have a chance to butt in. All I've managed to do is open my mouth in failed attempts to protest this whole time.

"Please look out for her! Chandra here likes to act tough, but she's actually a big softy. She'll appreciate being walked home." Elspeth adds, sounding like the only one who realizes I'm trying to turn down the help. She's conspiring against me, and she'll definitely pay for it later. For now I just need to...

I look outside, worry suddenly overcoming me. Feeling the dull ache in my arm, maybe it's best to play it safe and go home with the man who, to my knowledge, made Baral magically go away. I swallow my pride, my anger _and_ my suspicion, hunch my shoulders, hang my head and sigh in defeat.

"Meet me around back, I need to change out of my uniform." I tell him coldly, turning away just as a smile begins to form on his face as I walk into the kitchen and towards the back room. My manager stays behind, but Elspeth follows after me like a giddy puppy, grinning from ear to ear.

"Walking you home- how _romantic_." She smiles as I whack her in the shoulder. "Maybe you should invite him over and thank him with your body."

"What crazy porno character do you take me for, Elspeth?" I groan. " _No!_ I'm just letting him walk me home just in case Baral slinks back out of whatever gutter he slithered back into. _Nothing else_."

"Sure, sure, whatever." Elspeth laughs as we arrive at my locker. "And I'll be here to say I told you so when you two start getting cute and flirty."

"I swear, you have the craziest imagination..."

I put up with her weird poking and prodding until I'm out the back door, where she loudly tells me and my companion who is patiently waiting there for me goodbye, and to not do anything she wouldn't do... whatever that is. Elspeth doesn't do a lot of things (like mind her own business).

"Your friend's pretty energetic." He quips, nervously laughing. I shrug in response, sticking one hand in the pocket of my sweatshirt and pointing in the general direction of my apartment building with the other.

"I live over that way, not too far from here. If we walk fast it should only take us, like, five minutes." I explain, already beginning my journey toward home. He follows after me, quickly meeting my pace so the two of us are walking side by side. I welcome the silence that falls between us, though it doesn't last long as our shoulders accidentally brush together.

"Oh, sorry!" He exclaims.

"Well, maybe if you didn't walk so close to me..." I mumble. He raises his hands in surrender, taking a short step to the side- hardly enough for me to be satisfied.

"What's your deal, exactly?" I ask him.

"My deal?"

"Oh my god, don't act like you're innocent. You come into that diner every couple of weeks and ask for me specifically just so you can get a damn coffee." I grumble. "You don't even know me."

"Sorry I..." He pauses, looking up at the sky. "Just thought you were interesting, that's all."

" _Interesting_?" I raise my eyebrow and eye him disbelievingly.

"It's... kind of hard to explain."

"Yeah, and speaking of things that are hard to explain, how in the hell did you make Baral leave the diner?" I question.

"Oh, was that his name?"

"Yeah, he's my crazy ex-boyfriend- but seriously that isn't the point! Some way, somehow, you made him get up and leave!"

"I... have no idea what you're talking about."

"Bull _shit_ , you were standing right there watching him! I don't know how you did it, but there's no way you weren't involved!"

"I think you're misreading the situation."

"And I think you're lying out your ass!" I yell, standing in his path and keeping him from moving forward. "Look, I'm not as close-minded as you think I am. I'm not going to flip out if you're some crazy, mind-control wizard."

"Well..." He begins, and I stand before him expectantly, leaning in despite myself. "I'll tell you if you go on one date with me."

"E-eh?" I falter, me eager expression and stance totally dissolving.

"Just one date- and I promise I won't do anything weird." He assures me. "One date, and I'll tell you everything."

"Everything?"

" _Everything._ " He nods.

"...Fine, one date! But I swear to god, if you try anything creepy or weird, I'm going to make you regret ever stepping foot in that diner." I warn him.

"Is that a threat, miss Chandra?" He chuckles, not the slightest bit intimidated.

"Yeah, sure, if it keeps you from trying anything." I groan, turning around before quickly looking back over my shoulder to face him. "...What's your name, anyway? You know my name, but I have no idea who you are."

"Oh, man, I figured I'd introduced myself at one point!" He laughs and I narrow my eyes in response. "My name's Jace- Jace Beleren."


	2. The Night Begins

I don't even know why I even bother telling Elspeth anything. As soon as I step through the door of the diner the night after Jace took me home, she's already there, lingering in the doorway with lights glimmering in her eyes. I swear she's like a damn dog the way she's mastered the look that makes you give into her requests- which, this time, was asking what had transpired between me and Jace. Mid-sentence I'm already regretting considering telling Elsbeth about the upcoming date, because I'm watching _it_ happen: her smile grows so wide it looks like it might tear her face in half, and her eyes grow as wide as dinner plates and she looks so damn happy, like a proud mother hearing about how her young child aced a test. My expression, however, sours.

"Don't even say it." I groan, pushing past her, but she keeps tight on me, breathing excitedly down my neck as she grabs my shoulders, slowing my escape.

"Y-You..." She begins slowly. Maybe, given the speed at which she's speaking, I'll be able to put a stop to her ear-splitting cheer for me before it even happens. Of course, who am I kidding? Trying to put a stop to this woman's joy is like trying to stop a rock slide with just your hands.

"Elspeth..." I growl, trying to sound as annoyed and threatening as I can as we arrive at my locker in the back room.

"You're going on-"

"I swear to god, Els, I will dip your hands in the fryer if you-"

"-A _DATE_!" Her obnoxiously happy scream is accompanied by one of her patented tight bear hugs. Elspeth _looks_ petite and sweet, but the way she grabs you when she hugs you makes you question whether or not she's apart of some sort of fight club she isn't supposed to talk about.

"No, _no_!" I protest, groaning audibly as she begins to happily bounce up and down with me still tightly in her clutches. "No, Elspeth! Down girl!" I finally manage to wriggle from her grasp and return to preparing for my shift. "Sweet, merciful Christ, seriously, you act like he proposed to me..."

"How'd he manage to woo you, huh?" Elspeth asks, a sly grin on her pink, glossed-up lips. "Was he romantic? Did he sweep you off your feet?"

"He was mysterious and awkward and- no, he didn't 'woo' me, so don't fucking call it that!" I snap as I remove my sweat shirt and grab for the shirt of my uniform hanging in my locker. "I'm going on a date with him in exchange for _information_."

"Information about what?" My friend leans in eagerly. I begin to speak, opening my mouth before promptly closing it. If I tell her it's to see if he's some kind of crazy mind-control wizard, she'll either think I'm lying or take it as a joke. She wasn't there to see him seemingly magically make Baral leave the night before. She didn't see the slight flame burning in his eyes as he watched that hulking bastard leave. I only really have one other answer at my disposal, and it will only make her bother me even more about it.

"It's really none of your business, Els." She immediately pouts and gives me a playful shove as I'm concentrating slipping on my slacks. I stumble violently and spin, running into the locker before me. Seriously, I reiterate: A fight club she isn't supposed to talk about.

"Come on, I'm, like, your best friend!" She complains, putting on her most sad, quivering pout that she can.

"You're my only friend, Elspeth." I correct her. "But that doesn't mean I have to tell you everything."

"You told me everything about Baral!"

"That's because I was young and innocent and wanted someone to listen to me just in case I was found dead in a river somewhere." I groaned, tying my apron. I swear, her whining is consuming so much of my concentration, I've forgotten how to tie a knot. "Now come on. We have hungry, tired bums who panhandled their way to get here to serve. No time for gossip."

"You'd _better_ tell me how the date goes!" She grumbles, following after me towards the front of the diner.

"Sure, sure, whatever." I sigh, approaching her threat the same way I'm approaching the date: with as little enthusiasm as possible. I'm not going on it because I fancy the guy, or think that he's sweet or want to thank him for what he'd done the night before. I'm in it to get an explanation about what he'd done, and I'm going to get it regardless of how the date goes. I could go half-drunk in sweats and I'd still get what I wanted. The half-drunk part actually sounds really tempting, actually.

I swat Elspeth and her angry pout away once more before we walk onto the diner floor.

* * *

I stand right outside the lobby of my apartment building, still under the protective shade of the entryway as I look out into the rain. The weather suits my mood as I shove my hands into the pockets of my jacket- everything but the moist part about it, at least. It's been raining all day, and I've done nothing but take my anger and nerves about the date I'm currently waiting for out on online first-person shooters full of 12-year-olds who all have apparently been with my mother. I've literally exerted the most energy throwing on whatever clothes I had lying around than I did the entire day. I'm not excited, I'm not giddy, I'm not shivering with anticipation. I'm still waking up. And it's four in the afternoon.

I can't help but be a little nervous because it's been a good three years since I've gone out with anyone other that Elspeth to anywhere but super hero movies or self-defense classes. I don't want to admit it, but my years of putting effort into being single and never romantically interacting with men has left me a little green. I clench and un-clench my fists in my pockets, acknowledging my sweaty palms.

Just as my inner turmoil over my inexperience with men comes to a head, a car pulls up along the curb in front of me. I'm no expert on cars- just what looks nice and what looks like it's come straight from the early 90's or a scrap yard. And this car looks smack dab in the middle of "I have way too much money" and "I have a tiny penis, so I compensate by buying really fast, impressive cars". I suppress a glare as mister-potentially-rich-and-probably-poorly-endowed rolls down his window, waving at me from inside the car and calling my name over the din of the downpour.

"Chandra!" Jace is beaming from ear to ear. He's way too happy for this kind of weather. In fact, he looks absolutely energetic. My expression and mannerisms are complementary as I half-run to his car, feebly trying to use my arms as cover from the torrent of rain falling down from the clouds that just barely lazily wisp by the tops of the buildings.

"Sure is coming down, huh?" He asks as I open the passenger-side door. I look around me at the rain, wordlessly proclaiming, "duh!" before sliding into the car. The upholstery is leather and the seats are heated. Someone is pulling out all the stops on the "I have a really fancy car" train.

"Okay, so tell me-" I begin before he cuts me off more than eagerly.

"Questions later. Right now we should probably get going or else we're going to be late." He interrupts. I roll my eyes and sigh, looking to him. He's dressed to the nines (at least, as close to "the nines" as you can get in cloths that still seem just a little bit off in nothing but shades of blue) and I'm sitting beside him in a half-soaked jacket and ripped jeans with my hair tied back. In all honesty, it's a look that took me no more than 30 seconds to put together.

"...Where exactly are we going?" I dare to ask as we pull away from the curb.

"Well, first, we should probably get you something nice to wear." He begins.

"What's wrong with what I'm wearing?" I groan, though to be honest I do look really out of place next to him and his fancy-ass suit in his expensive-looking car.

"Nothing, nothing!" He laughs apologetically. I throw him an annoyed glare, although he's driving and I'm pretty sure he doesn't see it. "I just think you should look your best for where we're going, that's all."

"Which is...?" I impatiently pry.

"The opera." He tells me simply, a smile on his face.

Oh god, why didn't he bother to tell me? I would have put a little more effort into my outfit had I known he was going to take me somewhere classy. My cheeks match the temperature of the seat I'm sitting on as I look back down at my clothes. This is what I get for being the least amount of enthused for this date. "It's a really nice production- I've heard nothing but good things about it."

"Look, we can just swing back around to my apartment and I can grab a dress." I begin to tell him, looking back at my apartment building that's vanishing behind us in the fog. "I mean, I don't even have enough cash on my for an outfit suited for a damn _opera_!"

"Money isn't an issue. I'll pay for whatever you pick." He assures me warmly. This does nothing to sooth me, though.

"Please, don't waste your money on buying me a dress I'll only wear once! I have better clothes than this back at home, I swear!" I protest.

"I take it not a lot of people make you kind gestures like this." He chuckles lightly, to which I turn to him, practically shooting death beams from my eyes. "Money isn't an issue, I promise. Just think of it as thanks for all those coffees you've served me."

"Nice clothes in exchange for being served cheep, diner coffee seems like a really bad trade." I comment in defeat as I slump in my chair and look out the window. We're heading towards the nicer part of the city, where there's a coffee shop on every other corner and some luxury boutique on all the rest. The arts center where the opera house happens to be is at the very center of this opulent part of town, but I still feel uncomfortable. I always feel out of place here, me and my thrift-store clothes and the stink of the late shift at a cruddy diner still clinging to me. People here can tell when you're from the other part of town, and they practically run into each other turning up their noses at you.

I look at my reflection in the damp side mirror outside and take out my ponytail, trying to look as nice and presentable as I can in old clothes I pulled out of the damn hamper.

We pull up to a fancy-looking dress boutique not too far from the arts center. Vines with brightly colored flowers curl around the shop window and door. The dresses displayed in the window look incredibly nice and expensive, but at the same time seem a little oddly designed. Like Lady Gaga had a small hand in deciding what stitch went where. They remind me of Jace's clothing style, if he were a girl.

"We're here." He announces as I begin to open the door. "Whoa, hey, let me grab you an umbrella at least!" I snort, taking pleasure in taking away chances for him to act like a nice, upstanding gentleman. He's already buying a damn dress for me and taking me to an opera I've probably never heard of. He's not getting any more than that.

"And what, get the clothes I'm not even going to wear wet? Don't bother." I snort before stepping out into the rain. He hesitantly follows, an umbrella in his clutches, possibly for later when I'm wearing an investment of his instead of crummy old clothes that I've probably owned and worn since high school.

The inside of the boutique smells so overwhelmingly of flowers that it makes me dizzy. The inside has a modern-feel to it: everything is a stunning white with as little intricacies as possible. I'm used to places where all the clothes are clumped together on racks, but this place displays each, individual dress like an art piece, standing either on a short pedestal or within a space made for it in the wall, each with their own spotlight. Each one of them is beautiful in a strange, awkward way, and they all look horrifically expensive. I reach out to the first tag I see dangling from a night-black formal dress and stop reading it after the fifth digit. Okay, they're as expensive as they look.

"Welcome to Boutique Selesnya!" Someone calls from the back of the store. A young woman steps out, looking horribly flustered, like we'd come at a bad time. Measuring tape is in her left hand and a pair of scissors are in her right. If this is going to be how I die, I can honestly say I never saw it coming. But her gaze falls on my companion and her expression relaxes as she throws the tape over her shoulder and rests her scissors at the checkout counter.

Now that I'm relieved I'm not going to die some weird, unbelievable death, I'm taken back by her beauty. No blemish or dark mark or freckle is on her features, and her smile lights up the already incredibly bright room. Sighing contentedly, she smooths back her long, blond hair and dusts off her forest-green skirt. Sequins that were clinging to the fabric flutter to the ground.

"Glad to see you back, Jace." She says with a smile. As they exchange knowing glances, I figure they must know one another from somewhere. "Have you brought another girl for me to dress up?"

Hey, whoa, _what_? She's talking like he's done this before; brought another girl in here and bought her a really nice dress. That's oddly suspicious, and my discomfort is once again hiked up as I glance over at Jace, who seems incredibly uncomfortable the woman has even brought up his having been in this very store with different women.

"Y-Yeah, Emmara... this is Chandra. Chandra, this is Emmara. She owns the place." He introduces. The woman presumably named Emmara draws closer to me- way too close, actually. Close enough where I can feel her breath on me as she looks me up and down. She smells like the boutique- like she sampled every available floral perfume at a department store.

"Interesting..." She mumbles under her breath. Normally I probably wouldn't have even been able to hear her, but since she's so close I could probably hear just about anything she whispered.

"Interesting?" I question, and she pulls away, straightening up and laughing like she's been caught.

"Nothing, nothing. You just seem a little... different, as far as Jace's taste in women goes." She explains, and Jace quickly shushes her. She daintily presses her french-manicured nails to her lips.

"Taste in woman, huh?" I mumble as I look over at Jace, who's nervously staring straight ahead at Emmara, who's cheeks are a bright shade of red.

"L-Let's not squabble now, not in the store." Her flawless smile falters as she walks back over to me and circles me a few times like a curious bird of prey before stepping back and resting her chin on her upturned palm thoughtfully. The entire time I'm really only half paying attention to what she's doing. I'm more looking at Jace, who I'm learning about more and more as the date goes on.

How many girls has he brought through, dressed up, and taken to the damn opera? How many girls before me has he pulled this on? I'm not going to just let this be- oh no, not after what I've been through. As soon as Emmara randomly saunters energetically back into the back of the store and out of sight, I turn to Jace and give him a frustrated push. He's as stiff as a board and hardly moves at all as he looks over at me, eyes saying sorry before he even manages to get to speaking.

"So, what exactly _is_ your taste in women then?" I ask him, crossing my arms and leaning in in mock curiosity. "Do you lure in girls with your weird, mind sorcery and dress them up? And then what? What exactly am I to you if you've done this exact same thing before?" The more questions I ask, the more flustered and frustrated I get.

"Whoa, whoa, one question at a time, please!" He practically begs. I, at the very least, back off, but keep my cross look fixed on him. A pregnant silence follows, and I groan to break it.

" _Well_?" I ask him impatiently.

"Look, one, stop it with the whole 'mind sorcery' thing." He begins.

"It's the only explanation I've got, since you refuse to explain yourself." I interject.

"And two, so I've dated one or two women, is that really all that important?"

"It just seems oddly suspicious that you bring them all through here."

"Sorry if it strikes you as weird, but I promise, whatever you're thinking, it isn't like that!"

"Really? Then what is it like? What exactly is going on here?" I growl. "You're walking on incredibly thin ice buddy. I really suggest you stop being so damn vague before you wind up going to the opera alone and I walk back home through the rain."

"Now, now, what did I say about bickering in the boutique." Emmara calls as she reemerges with something draped over her arms. She holds it carefully and away from herself, attention split between us and the bunch of red fabric hanging over her arms.

"Sorry, I really can't stand _bullshit_." I grumble, looking to Jace. Neither of us seem at all happy right now, and it clearly bothers Emmara who forces me to take whatever she's carrying, stepping between us and herding me toward the back of the store.

"Now, now, don't be angry. Furrowing your brow like that all the time causes premature aging." She quickly retorts. "Now, go put this on, and I'll give mister Beleren here a little talking to. Go on!" I eye the two of them, suspicion growing as I slowly walk into the back.

The back of the store is a lot more disorganized. Several mannequins are standing about, wearing half-finished dresses, and rolls of cloth are spread everywhere. Scraps of this and that are scattered all over the floor and spools of thread and packages of needles are occupying every possible space. There isn't a single sewing machine in the entire room, though, and as I look down at what I assume is a dress I realize she must have made this entirely by hand. I hold it a little more carefully as I look around for a place to change.

A full length mirror leans against one of the walls, so naturally I head over to it, unfolding the dress and holding it against my body. It's a red, strapless dress with silver trim. The skirt flares outward, made by layers of solid red and transparent, sparkling fabric in hues of red, and orange, like it was meant to replicate the look of fire. It's a beautifully made dress, but I wonder if it will even look good on me. I definitely won't be able to tell just by holding it up to my frame, so I sigh and drape the dress over a nearby chair and begin to strip myself of my damp clothes. Every now and then as I change, I look over my shoulder just to make sure no one is watching me undress.

Once the dress is on I take a long, hard look at myself in the mirror. I've never really worn anything this fancy before. It hugs my body like it was meant for me, but for some reason I feel uncomfortable in it. My hair has become wavy from the shower outside and has started to go frizzy from all the moisture in the air. My freckled face and semi-toned frame just seem wrong in something so beautiful. I spin around a couple of times to try and get used to the image, looking at myself from all different angles. I can't seem to concince myself that I look okay, no matter how much I look or twirl or carefully fiddle around with the dress. No matter how pretty the outfit, no clothes will turn you into a beautiful swan. I just look like a plain-looking chick wearing a really expensive looking dress, and it all comes across looking awkward and forced.

But Emmara picked it out for me, and the performance isn't going to wait for us, so I wander back toward the front of the boutique- that is, until I hear Emmara and Jace quietly conversing with one another. The conversation seems horribly private, which only makes me want to listen in even more. I press myself tight against the wall and drift carefully toward the front as much as I can without being seen.

"Do you really think she..."

"...I haven't been wrong about one yet, right?"

"Yes, that's true, but... what if..."

"I'm positive, she is. Just trust me..."

I take one more step, and the floorboards creak from under me. Immediately, both of them shut up and look to the entrance to the back, waiting for me to emerge. They definitely aren't going to continue talking, now that they are aware of my presence. Trying to pretend like I hadn't been eavesdropping, I step into view. Emmara claps excitedly, swooping in and circling me again, admiring the dress on me from every angle. Jace just seems stunned, standing glued to where he is.

"Does it look... bad?" I ask them.

"No!" They both reply in stereo. Jace nervously clears his throat while Emmara takes over speaking. "It looks wonderful on you. I knew it would. I've been saving that piece for a while now, and now I'm glad I didn't try displaying it in the store. It would be a shame if it were being worn by anyone but you."

"You know, if you lay on the flattery too thick, it starts to sound really unbelievable." I tell her.

"Sorry, sorry, I don't mean to gush. I really do think you look fantastic in this number though." Emmara turns to Jace, who seems to have taken a liking to the ground judging by how hard he's staring at it. "Doesn't she look nice, Jace?" He looks up, but only manages to allow his mouth to hang loosely open. " _Well_ , Jace?"

"S-she looks fine!" He nods, the blush on his cheeks standing out against his blue attire. "I mean... you look good, Chandra. The dress looks... really good on you."

"...Thanks..." I say cautiously. There isn't a single bit of doubt in his voice. It's genuine, truthful- maybe even painfully so. It _almost_ melts away all of my doubts before I remember the conversation I overheard merely moments ago. I remember I still have no idea what's going on- even less than what I originally thought. I don't know what it is, but I have to suffer through the rest of the night before I get to find out.

"Well, enough gawking. If you two linger here any longer, you'll be late!" Emmara scolds, patting me on the back.

"R-right..." Jace agrees, waiting for me to arrive beside him. "How much is the-"

"On the house." Emmara interrupts, smiling widely.

"Oh, Emmara, you know I can't-"

"Oh, hush. The dress wasn't even on display, and I've been holding onto it for months now. I was honestly thinking of sacrificing it for scrap, anyway, so you might as well just take it." She grins sweetly. "Just a little, kind gesture for all the business you bring me."

"Thank you..." I say, a little flabbergasted by it all. I'm still unsure about the dress, but if it's one thing I've learned, it's never to turn down anything free. Free samples, free newspapers, free CDs, free really expensive dresses- I take what I can get.

"Yes, thank you." Jace adds, exchanging a smile with Emmara.

"It's no bother at all. Now hurry up and get going. The opera waits for no one."

The two of us nod in agreement as we step out into the rain. Along with the dress, I have an all new set of questions tingling on the tip of my tongue. Just a little bit longer, and they'll all be answered.

I hope.


	3. A Sudden Change

The arts have never really been my favorite thing in the world, but I've never thought of myself as uncultured. That was, until my date with Jace to the opera. I don't think I've ever been so lost and confused in my entire life. I could probably handle mazes and word-puzzles better than how I manage to handle understanding the entire performance. It's in a completely different language, for one; one I hardly even understand and am beginning to assume is actually sung in a dead language unearthed from some tomb in a dessert somewhere. That and it's an "artsy" sort of thing- not some classic everyone has heard about. So there is no possible way for me to understand, even by just listening to the music and watching the actors, exactly what's going on.

I look to Jace, trying to gauge his reactions, but he just seems drawn in the entire time, dead-serious and leaning slightly forward, like he's listening to a really serious story (which, hell, it might have been. I have absolutely no idea). There's really nothing much for me to do but sit back, try and find some kind of cue as to what in the world is going on and keep from falling asleep in a crowd of people of which I am a complete outsider to. I'd hate to seem any more of a philistine by falling asleep and possibly snoring during an opera.

I find some relief from the live action brain puzzle being presented during the intermission, thank god. Once Jace leads me out of the theater I immediately go to find the bathroom to camp out, think, and hide from the other upper class, opera-consuming crowd that I obviously am not blending into. In attempts to seem like a cultured lady, I tell Jace I'm going to go powder my nose, but in a manner that probably made it sound like I had no idea what "powering my nose" would even involve. Which is accurate, because I don't. I just sit myself in a stall and hide.

My phone is back with my clothes in Jace's car, so I can't reach out to Elspeth about what a miserable time I'm having. Which you wouldn't think so, seeing as any other girl would kill to be bought a nice, fancy dress and be taken to an opera. I'm more ripped jeans and monster truck rallies myself. I'm not a fan of events where I have to sit quietly and try and uncover the mysteries of a performance. I'm not a fan of being faced with the fact I'm not as smart as I think I am.

Listening to a gaggle of older woman chat in a manner that might as well be foreign to me, I wonder to myself why I'm even there. I'm there to uncover if Jace Beleren is secretly a crazy, mind-controlling sorcerer. I'm here to uncover the secrets of the one guy from the diner who happened to do something I couldn't explain. I'm here to learn about a guy I keep telling myself over and over again I care nothing about. The more I think about it the angrier I get, because I'm on this date to learn about a guy because he intrigues me. This wouldn't bother most people, but it bothers me, the girl who has sworn off getting close to another guy for as long as she lived. Or so I thought.

"Hey, Chandra?" Speak of the devil, that's him now, calling into the bathroom to see if I didn't give him the slip. "You still in here?" I'm tempted not to answer and to make him believe I've run off. But after a few, long seconds he persistently calls my name again and I groan.

"Yeah, I'm here, give me a second, god..." I mutter, standing up and slowly emerging from the stall. He's peeping his head through the door, looking concerned, and I glare back at him: the source of all my troubles.

"Go on, shew. I'll be out in a second, I don't need you watching me!" I snap, and he obeys, quickly vanishing. I sigh in exhaustion, walking over to the sink to wash my hands. I catch a glimpse of myself in the mirror, and I look like I'm attending a funeral judging by my expression.

_Yeah, a funeral for my pride._

I stare back at myself for a couple more seconds, trying to motivate myself into making an expression that didn't mimic disdain. It's really an unsuccessful attempt, seeing as I leave the bathroom looking just as much if not in more a sour mood than before. Jace is waiting right outside, holding two glasses of something I hope is alcoholic. I could really use a drink right about now.

"Are... you okay?" He asks as he offers me a glass. I take it and immediately begin to drink, tasting only a small hint of the bitter sting of liquor. I don't respond until the glass is completely empty, and I have half the mind to take the second glass clearly meant for him and down that one, too.

"I've been better." I mutter. "Just questioning my life choices."

"You know... we can go, if you want."

I don't think I could have looked up him looking less enthusiastic. For once, I looked at him with a hopeful, happy glance, no doubt with my eyes sparkling. I don't even have to speak, he knows right away I'd rather be anywhere else.

"Sorry, I didn't really figure you weren't much of an opera person." He apologizes.

"It's more of, I'm not much of a 'going on dates with complete strangers' person." I correct him. "I'd just rather be somewhere where I don't feel like a total outsider, thanks."

"Well, we could go somewhere to eat-"

"Or we could just end the date here and you could explain yourself." I add. "You forget I'm not here for a romantic dinner or a trip to the opera or the fancy dresses- I'm here for _answers_."

"Look... I know you really don't want to be here. You've made that point really, _really_ clear all evening." Jace sighs. "We just need to make one last stop, and then you'll have all the answers you'll need."

"Like how you're a magical womanizer, apparently?" I ask snidely. He looks like he's about to deny it, his brows knitting together before he audibly pauses, leans back and takes a breath.

"Whatever you want, Chandra..." He sighs, and for a brief second I actually feel a little bad. His polite, gentlemanly outer shell has finally begun to slip, and I don't really like what lies just below the surface. I'm annoying him. He's probably just annoyed as I am, except he's not bothered that a complete stranger is dragging him through a lavish evening where he doesn't feel he belongs, all for answers that could have easily been given nights before. He's annoyed because he has to take a girl who has been angry and sarcastic all evening on a date. Part of me wants to explain my actions- that my last relationship made me trust men a lot less and that it potentially ruined me for good in terms of relationships.

But, instead, I stay quiet and nod while I look around. Everyone around us seems so happy- enjoying themselves on a fancy night out with friends and spouses and loved ones. Everyone is so merry, discussing the opera so far and gushing about the performance, drinking fancy drinks and wearing equally fancy dresses and suits. Jace and I only have the last two later down. We're quiet and we can't mask the fact we're not all that happy anymore. No amount of drink or lavish dress can mask that.

We continue our bout of frustrated silence as we make our way outside and wait quietly and awkwardly for the valet. Our fingers brush for a moment as we wait, looking out into the rain, but I quickly shrink back. Jace, on the other hand, doesn't so much as react. Either he doesn't care, or I'm just a little too sensitive. I bite my lip as I take a small step to the side, away from him. We came together, are waiting for a car together and are going to leave together, but we look the farthest thing from a couple.

He really hasn't done much of anything to earn my kindness- goading me into a date, keeping secrets and trying to shew away the fact he apparently does this on the regular with different girls. But... has he really done anything to earn my suspicion, other than he's a guy and that he has some interest in me? I could have easily turned him down at the cost of my curiosity. He didn't force me. He didn't bring me here to make me miserable. I'm discovering all these sorts of things about myself- that my relationship with Baral has actually deeply ruined me for any other sort of relationship- just by standing here, pulling away from simple touches and refusing to enjoy myself even after he went out of his way to buy me a dress and take me to a fancy (albeit confusing) opera. I really don't like how this silence has opened up deep chasms of self-discovery I can't climb out of.

"Chandra." Jace calling my name pulls me back. His car has arrived, and before I could refuse the gesture, he's taken out and opened up his umbrella and is shading me with it for the short trek through the rain we'll have to take from the steps of the opera house to the street.

"Sorry I was just..." I begin before shaking my head. "Never mind. Let's just get out of here."

He looks at me, and for a split second I look back. I don't like the way he's staring at me, like he's sorry- not sorry for the evening, mind you, but feels sorry for me- like I'm so sad and picked upon. An annoyed grumble escapes me and it surprises me just how utterly done I sound as I begin to head down the steps to the car myself, with or without him. It doesn't take too long for him to catch up, however, and shelter me from the rain. I keep my eyes focused forward all the way to the car, refusing to look at him or let my eyes graze over him as I slide into the car, the door opened for me. I suddenly don't have the energy to actively turn down his chivalry.

The silence persists as we pull away, and Jace seems to figure it will only continue on for longer because he turns up the radio. I lean my head against the cold glass, watching the fancy apartment buildings, extravagant boutiques and coffee house after coffee house pass us by as we speed down the rain-drenched road.

"Jace, I-" I begin to say, pushing forward before drawing away again. I want to speak up, possibly fill the dead air with something. But my words die in my throat, shriveled and stillborn, and I regret even speaking up. Jace looks over at me, unable to hide how eager he is that _I'm_ actually bothering to talk to _him._ "I..." I try and try and try to reclaim the words, but they don't come. But he'll probably hound me if I just shake my head and tell him to forget it. At the very least, I need to complete my sentence to placate him.

"I don't really like this station. Could I change it?"

Way to go, genius. Super smooth.

* * *

Somewhere along the line, I had fallen asleep. Maybe I was just tired, maybe the weather had made me drowsy, or maybe the drink Jace had given me had a little more alcohol than I thought. The car coming to a stop is enough to wake me up before Jace reaches over, and I wound up looking over with his hand half-outstretched to try and jostle me awake. In my freshly-woken-up haze, I gasp and slap his hand away before turning and slamming my head against the window of the car.

"Shit!" I hiss, pulling away and rubbing my now aching head.

"Oh, jeeze, sorry!" Jace apologizes. "I was just trying to wake you up."

"How about you do it a little _more_ creepy next time." I grumble. "I bet with all your experience with women, you know girls _love_ getting touched when they're asleep."

"Hey, I said I was sorry." He repeats. "I wasn't going to do anything weird, I promise. And I couldn't have just left you sleeping in here, could I?"

"Ugh..." I mutter, a little too groggy still to come up with some sort of sly comeback. He wins this round, but only for the moment. "Where are we, anyway?" Looking outside it's nearly impossible to tell. We're parked at the entrance to what seems like a really snazzy apartment building, and I can clearly see an over-the-top chandelier hanging in the lobby inside, but the area around the building is unrecognizable- in fact, it's actually pitch black. If anything, we're no longer in the city and I probably slept a lot longer than I thought I had.

"Why don't you step out and find out for yourself?" Jace asks with a smile. He seems almost excited for me to guess, and it's both confusing and annoying. But what choice do I have? My legs ache from sitting for what I can only assume wasn't just a quick car ride around the block, and the smell of warm leather is starting to suffocate me. I give him a suspicious look as I open my door, not breaking eye contact with him until I'm completely outside.

At the very least, from listening, I can tell the rain has stopped. The air is warm and humid, and it feels like I'm wrapped in a damp blanket the second I step outside. But from under the lights of the driveway I can't see anything beyond- just scattered lights of buildings that have been build purposely far away from one another. We're definitely far away from the claustrophobic clutches of the city- I'm faced with this fact once again.

"You didn't take me out to the middle of nowhere so you could, like, kill me or something, did you?" I ask as Jace joins me, handing off his keys to yet another valet.

"Do I really seem the type?" He chuckles, sounding exhausted or like I'd just punched him on the gut.

"I don't know, you're the one who's keeping all these secrets. I know your name, and that you take a lot of girls out on fancy dates. I'm sure a lot of serial killers do the same thing." I narrow my eyes as I look over my shoulder at him.

"Okay, you can have my word that at least I'm not a-"

"And rapists." I add, probably just to make things harder for him as he struggles to find the words to reassure me he didn't bring me to... wherever we are so that he could rape and or kill me. He looks like he's about to fly into a panic.

"I promise I'm not going... to do _any of that_!" he assures me in a flustered tone. "I know I've had to keep things about myself, but I promise I'm not..."

"Convince me then? Or am I going to have to wait through some overly-luxurious dinner so you can fatten me up before you kill me?" I cross my arms, smirking slightly.

"Why are you so convinced I'm going to kill-!?"

"Or rape." I add.

" _Ooh_..." Jace mutters, cupping his face with his hand.

"It'll only take a couple of seconds to tell me what you really are, tops. So why don't you get it all done and over with- like ripping off a band-aid." I tell him. "I mean, look where we are- I couldn't just up and leave once you tell me. You've got me right where you want me if you want to satisfy my curiosity prematurely. Aaaand, if anything, it will give us some good dinner conversation about how you're a mind-control wizard-slash-murderer-slash-rapist."

"Fine, fine! Just.. not here, okay?" Jace finally caves and I can't help but chuckle as I grin in victory.

"Hey, we can do this wherever you want, guy." I laugh, standing proudly with a hand on my hip. "You just lead the way."

"Alright..." Jace mutters as he walks over to me- or rather trudges. The fact I've driven him into a corner in order to get him to tell me must really be hitting him hard. Maybe all those other girls he wined and dined weren't as pushy or determined- just a bunch of innocent young beauties distracted by his opulence. He made a real mistake walking into that downtown diner and deciding to become attracted to little old me. Elspeth would have been a much easier catch.

He stops beside me, much to my surprise, offering me his hand.

"What? You want me to hold your hand?" I asked him with a smirk. "After tonight, do you really think I'm the type? I think I can handle myself, thanks."

"Trust me, I need you to take my hand." Jace told me, looking completely serious despite the confusing request. "I know it sounds a little fishy, but I promise you'll understand why in a second." I cock and eyebrow in suspicion, looking between Jace's urging look and his outstretched hand. I lift my hand just a little before pulling away.

"I mean, it's just holding hands. And no one is around to see it, so whatever sense of pride you're trying to protect isn't going to be damaged." He assured me.

"God, fine!" I grumble, reaching out and firmly taking his hand. He flinches a little, but I chose not to pull my punches and let up. I'll give him a break once he finally comes clean to me. "Lead the way then, _Romeo_."

Wordlessly, he obeys and leads us into the darkness, outside into the humid air. A breeze hits my face, a familiar scent greeting me- though it's one I hardly encounter these days. It reminds me of when I was a kid, on summer trips with my family before the world turned me hard and bitter. And the moment I come to a conclusion a familiar sound greets me as Jace leads me across the street.

The ocean.

We must have driven two or three hours go get here- I must have slept a lot harder than I thought. I feel a little more groggy just thinking about it. Being taken on a date I didn't want to go to and having to sit through the first half of an opera I didn't understand all while trying my hardest to try and stay bitter around Jace must have taken a depressingly large amount of energy out of me.

We pause to take off our shoes, leaving them on a bench that sat right at the boarder of cement and sand. It's cool and wet and almost immediately coats my feet as we walk toward the shore, the sound of crashing waves growing louder and louder. The clouds have completely broken up now, leaving behind a surprisingly clear sky with the moon hanging above us and bathing everything in a faint, white-blue glow. If I didn't know any better, I'd say the situation was... almost romantic.

"Jeeze, it's been forever since I actually went to the ocean." I think out loud as we reach the water. The cold, salty waves just barely lap at our feet before being pulled back into the black vastness of the ocean. "Not since I was a kid."

"Really?" Jace asks in disbelief. "I mean, it's a bit of a drive, but it's not so far away that it's impossible to get to."

"After my parents divorced, they were too busy being angry at one another to bother taking little trips like these." I shrug. There's hardly much of a sting mentioning my past now. It's been so long and the news is so old, talking about my past phases me as much as talking about the weather. "And it's really no fun going to the ocean alone. I'd rather just stay home."

I look down at the wet sand. The sand at our feet is so damp, it's almost like a mirror, reflecting back the stars glittering above us. Right here, the nights sky above and reflected below us, it seems like we're floating in space.

"Not a big fan of traveling?" Jace asks, looking like he's leading up to something. There's a look in his eyes that makes him seem really eager, even if his tone doesn't give it away.

"Well, no, it's not that. I've always wanted to just get in a car and drive wherever." I explain. "I just feel like the universe at large is just holding me down. I have no money, I have no friends, I have no energy- everything piles and piles up. I think I've seen more of the inside of my apartment than I do the outside."

Jace remains silent for a moment as the two of us look out towards the waves and the darkness. I wouldn't say I've been on edge the entire evening, but standing here I feel I can finally relax.

"The correct term is 'mind-mage'." Jace finally speaks up, catching me off guard. It takes me a good couple of seconds to process what he's said, and before I can even do that he's continued speaking. "'Mind-control wizard' just sounds silly."

"You..." I spun around the face him, my mind reeling as a triumphant grin grows on my face. "You really are a-!"

"Hush." Jace speaks practically in a whisper but his words are harsh enough to actually make me listen and I swallow my words. He reaches out, taking my other hand in his and faces me, and it's like the air is filled with an energy that makes me fidget uneasily. Something is off- not wrong, but... different, somehow. "I need to you be quiet for a second. I... need to focus."

"On what?" I ask, piping up but speaking softly. "What are you doing?"

"Something that may or may not actually work. And if that's the case... well then rest assured, you'll wake up tomorrow like tonight never even happened. And you won't have me bothering you for coffee late at night again."

"What are you talking about?" I ask, a little more forward this time. The wind around us starts to pick up a little, kicking up lose grains of sand and droplets of salt water. And yet, I'm strangely calm- albeit a little confused.

"All those other girls... I was so sure they had been the one, but every time, it turns out to be just another fluke. But I was careful when I found you. I waited and made sure..." He continues on, talking in riddles I can't get a grasp on. "But the only way to actually find out for real is to show you."

"Show me what, Jace?" I'm not even trying to be subdued anymore. My words are practically a shout as my hair whips me in my face, nearly obscuring my vision. I can't even brush it out of my face, or cover my eyes, seeing as Jace has a firm grip on my hands. "What the hell are you talking about!?"

"I'm talking about the lonely feeling I know you have in your heart- that feeling like you don't really belong, or have to keep people at a distance!" Jace shouts back, seeming almost pained as he talks. "Do you ever wonder why that is!?"

"I-" I begin to say before the words and air are ripped from my lips. A wave of disorientation overcomes me, and for a second I fight the urge to vomit. In my surprise, I tightly shut my eyes and in my fear, I cry out. Winds as hot as fire whip past, and at the same time an easy, yet frozen breeze nips at my skin. Up and down become almost alien concepts, and I can't even tell if I'm standing or if I'm falling.

"Open your eyes, Chandra." Jace's voice seems to echo from all directions, even though I'm completely sure he's talking right in front of me. I reluctantly obey, opening one eye, and then both as wide as I can as I gasp in surprise. The calm, moonlit night is gone, the sea is gone, the sand is gone. I can't even tell if solid ground is still beneath our feet. I can't tell if we're standing or floating in a world of swirling expanses of color- light and darkness chaotically mingling before my eyes, forming shapes and shadows before becoming different things altogether.

My breathing quickens.

"Chandra... are you alright?"

My legs feel like goddam jello and quiver uneasily beneath me.

"Where... where are..." I manage to speak through lips that shiver and shake, my voice doing about the same.

"This... is the Blind Eternities. You're a planeswalker, Chandra."

That's about as much as I can take. Weakly falling to my knees, Jace's concerned face is the last thing I see before my vision goes completely black.


	4. Tell Me Everything

The first thing I come to find- before I even have the courage to open my eyes- is that I'm damp. I'm damp and cold and wildly uncomfortable. It feels like I've slept in the most uncomfortable position imaginable and like someone doused me with water before that. My eyes aren't even open and I'm not even fully conscious and I'm already incredibly upset. I can only imagine exactly what awaits me when I open my eyes and come to completely.

But not even my wildest imagination could concoct what I slowly am remembering what happened to me before I wound up... _shit_ , it could be _anywhere:_ My apartment, outside somewhere, somewhere I've never been and missing a kidney- oh the list is endless and only gets more and more morose. But not as shocking and ill-making as what I had seen- where I had been taken moments before I couldn't take anymore and allowed myself to give into unconsciousness' sweet embrace. I had been somewhere, but at the same time nowhere, but at the pit of my stomach, I feel it also could have been _everywhere._ Everywhere all at once, laid out before me in swirling color and other sorts of stimuli that assaulted my senses. Just remembering it- feeling torn between everywhere and the large, endless expanse of shifting, creeping nothingness- makes my stomach turn, and a dry heave finally rouses me from my terror-induced slumber.

Hand over my mouth to keep from possibly vomiting I roll over and nearly topple down onto the floor. I come to find I've been placed precariously on the edge of a couch in a living room I don't recognize in the least. Everything seems simple, but expensive- a room put together by someone with boatloads of money who isn't quite sure if they want to play the part of the monied. It's also lightly decorated- no, that's an overstatement of the century. Aside from furnishings, there's not a single picture or book or bit of paraphernalia lying anywhere. Just a couple of nice, leather couches, a glass coffee table only sporting circular stains from where someone had set many cups of tea or coffee and side tables bearing nothing but lamps that were set to their lowest setting and bathed the room in dim, unhelpful light- and to my right I can see the dining area which was just a table and chairs, looking like they were made of stainless steal. The place is decorated but feels largely uninhabited.

A large part of me had hoped that maybe I'd dreamed all of it- like maybe I'd slipped on the freshly cleaned floor of the diner and everything after that had been in my head- but now I'm awake in yet another unfamiliar place and I find that my reality that has slowly become more and more of some wild, fever-nightmare is continuing on.

"Oh, thank god, you're up!" I hear someone call as they emerge from around the corner. It's Jace, dressed a little more casually but still just as strange. I narrow my eyes. _My nightmare grows worse._

"Whatever the _fuck_ is going on, trust me when I say I want nothing to do with it." I mutter as I sit up, not letting my eyes part ways from him as he waltzes into the room with cups of something steaming in his hands. He's come to make nice after he dragged me into some crazy fantasy, and I'm not going to have it. Not one bit.

"But surely you want to know about it." He responds right back, not the least bit deterred. "I mean, that's the reason you agreed to come along with me tonight: for answers." He thinks he's being awfully crafty, I can tell by the grin he's trying really, really hard to suppress- like a fool trying not to laugh at his own bad joke.

"Fuck off..." I groan, refusing whatever it is he's offering to me until he gives up and sets the cup on the coffee table that he, too, sits himself down on. I'm all barbs and anger now, but he doesn't look like he's going to give up. Being abrasive and pissy hadn't really worked before, so I suppose it won't work now, but that doesn't mean I'm going to give up the ghost and accept him and his madness he wants to take me into with open arms. Kicking and screaming all the way!

"I can tell deep down, passed all that anger and confusion, you're wildly curious about all this- about me, about what you saw. I admit I was a little vague at the time..." Jace chuckled. "Don't try to deny it, I can read your mind. You know, as a 'mind-control wizard' and all." He shrugs and laughs and I snarl the hardest that I can. To hell with this guy- straight to god-damned hell.

"I thought it was ' _mind mage_ '." I scoff through my scowl.

"Just trying to humor you, that's all."

"Well stop!" I snap. "Just... fucking _stop_! Just... call me a fucking taxi and get me out of here! Get me away from all this insanity and whatever the hell you are! I don't want any of it!" I begin to stand, my legs wobbling and shaking- but I refuse to fall or waver as I stomp over to what I assume to be the front door.

"Is that really what you want?" Jace asks, apparently right behind me, having tailed me all the way from the couch. "I'm not going to make you forget- not now, now that I know you and I are one in the same. You're going to live out the rest of your life, knowing you bore witness to something terrifying and amazing and altogether inexplicable... and knowing you will never know what it really, _truly_ was." He pauses long enough for me to grow impatient as I clench my fists. "Is that what you want?"

"...I came here to figure you out. I came here because I wanted to know what the fuck you did back at the diner! I didn't come here to learn that I'm... whatever the hell you called it! I want to be normal and live out a regular, normal life. I've had my fill of... _weird_." I begin to mutter, palming my face with an open hand as I shake my head. "You're a gigantic bastard for holding that sort of thing over my head."

"If you knew my desperation, than you'd understand why I don't want you to leave." Jace urges. "I've jumped at every chance whenever I find someone who might be like me. I've stumbled upon a fair number of mages with untapped potential and an even larger number of people who were just my mistaking their charm for magic. But I was so... careful when I found you. I watched and waited and made so... so sure."

"Is that why you came and bothered me at the diner, night after night?" I growl. "Because you thought I was some sort of magic person!?"

"Well, you are, whether or not you believe me- but that isn't the point!" He exclaims. "It's just... when you're seemingly the only person who can explore the countless worlds that exist out there in the beyond... when you realize just how small you are and just how rare you are and just how awful it is not to be able to confide in anyone about it... The feeling of loneliness is enough to kill a person." He laughs- a little sadder this time. He's no longer trying to be buddy-buddy or upbeat with me anymore. His facade is down- dead at his feet. "I know this sounds really cliché, especially to you but... you're my only hope, Chandra."

"God, you're pathetic..." I mumble, leaning against the door I'd made it all the way to. All I need to do is reach out and turn the knob and I'm free. Free... with the knowledge I now have and Jace's desperation weighing heavily on my mind. I don't say it, but I'm just as pathetic as he is. "...Well, I'm not going to sit around and talk to you all wet, covered in sea-water. If I'm going to stay here and consider whatever it is you have to say, you're going to have to be a little more hospitable."

"O-Oh, right!" He nods, looking all the more like an enthusiastic puppy promised a big, juicy bone. "I... I brought your change of clothes up with us. You're welcome to use the bathroom, if you want."

I look around him, coming to find my clothes, neatly folded on the arm rest of the couch I'd been sleeping on. Bastard was going to send me home without my clothes. I can only imagine why he'd want to keep them and- hell, I actually don't want to imagine that.

"I will, thank you." I take him up on his offer as I push passed him and go to grab my clothes. "And, while I'm getting changed, order a pizza or Chinese or _something_. I'm done with all the fancy bullshit and I'm starving."

"Are those... all your demands?" Jace asks in a tone that sounds a little sarcastic.

"Well, I'd tell you to drop dead, but I don't think you'll be _that_ accommodating _._ " I roll my eyes. "Just... no more weird, stupid, magical surprises. I've had my fill of physical examples of such, thanks."

I try to make a dramatic exit, but the first door I open leads to a closet and the second to the laundry room. Jace has already taken out his phone to try and look up someplace to call out to, leaving me to my devices. At least he doesn't watch in awkward silence while I accidentally take a tour of his home- a rather luxuriously large apartment, now that I'm looking at it. As someone from the one bed/ one bath side of life, this is more like an actual house than an apartment.

Clinging onto my dry clothes I want desperately to change into, I pass by a large window taking the place of one of the walls that lines a narrow corridor in the apartment. It looks out over the ocean that's nothing but a expanse of pitch-blackness in the night. I can see ships, but they're so far off they look like glittering stars that hang above the water. If I didn't know any better, I'd assume we were actually in space. The view and the subsequent feeling are a slight bit calming as I pause to rest my head against the cool glass. For a moment I lose myself in the view of almost relaxing nothingness spattered with twinkling lights.

That place- the "Blind Eternities" he called it- was shocking. But... it wasn't it's unfamiliarity to me what surprised me enough to knock me out. More the fact that it actually existed...

I shake me head, prying myself from where I had been leaning and continue my search until I find the bathroom- _finally_! And it's the size of my bedroom. There's both a bath large enough to fit a whole party of people and a shower with all sorts of buttons and knobs for god knows what, but I'm going to find out eventually. The walls and floor are made of swirling marble and yet another wall is replaced simply by a large window looking out over the ocean. I think we're high enough to where I don't have to worry about anyone peeping in, which is a relief because Jace apparently doesn't know what curtains or shades are.

There's even a damn fireplace in here (not currently being used, of course). The level of luxury in just the damn bathroom is starting to piss me off. As a creature who can't even spread her arms all the way in her own bathroom and has to squat so that she can wash her hair under her shower-head placed too low, this place is really hard to take.

I turn to the sink and the long mirror that stretches from one end of one of the walls to the other and go from feeling envious to feeling guilty. The dress Emmara had given me- the nice, fancy red dress she probably put a lot of work into sewing and stitching by hand that probably cost as much as my rent, had she actually bothered to sell it- is totally ruined from being soaked. The fabric clings to my body, the fine fabrics completely saturated by salt water. There are even a couple of tears in it and places where the threads had been snagged and have started to become lose. Had I really taken such a drastic fall, or had Jace carried me all the way up here with the manner and grace of a viking taking home his prize? Either way, the dress was far from it's former glory and I feel the lighter side of terrible. I could take it to be washed and fixed, but I know it will be costly all the same. I can't go throwing money at a dress that was given to me as a gift, no matter how bad I feel about having ruined it.

With a heavy sigh I remove it, reaching behind me to pull down the zipper and shaking my way out of the wet fabric. I'm trying really hard not to think too deeply I'm down to nothing but my skivvies in some other man's place. Elspeth would have a field day with this, I'm sure. Not that she's hearing about any detail from this evening. Even mentioning that Jace took me to get a nice dress and then to a fancy-ass opera would set her off, romanticizing our evening together for an entire shift or even two. I'm going to have to fabricate an entire evening to shut her up. The very thought is exhausting.

Stripping down to nothing I wander over to the shower, but it doesn't take long, standing there butt-naked and trying to make sense of a contraption that's probably just as advanced as a computer and twice as complicated before I give up and decide to just take a bath. At least whoever rigged up this place was kind enough to make the tub simple enough to use. Just turn the knob I assume is for hot water all the way around and leave the thing to fill. There's nothing much I can do after that point but wait, sitting on the edge of the tub, watching as the scalding hot water slowly rises.

Even as a kid, hot water has never bothered me. I remember once I had an accident in the kitchen as a child and knocked a pot of boiling water onto myself. I cried more because of the surprise and the fact it was _normal_ for a small child to cry when doused in scalding-hot water. But, aside from a little redness, I was fine. The doctors in the ER my parents insisted on rushing me to thought we were playing a prank.

 _"I'm talking about the lonely feeling I know you have in your heart- the feeling like you don't really belong, or have to keep people at a distance."_ Jace's words echo in my head as the water drifts up to my ankles. _"Do you ever wonder why that is?"_

I look down at my hands, clasping and unclasping them thoughtfully.

Of course I wonder- or at least I used to. Recently, I just accepted it as me just being awkward and mistrusting from the years I spent together with Baral. I came to believe I felt that way for no special reasons... even after _that_ final night with him. Even after what happened that night... I'd put it at the back of my mind- shoved it way back and drowned it in seas of excuses and delusion. That night when I...

I feel sick again, and my stomach groans in agony. Holding my head in my hands I force myself to stop thinking about it- about all of it. About that evening, about what happened- just like I'd done dozens of times before until doing so was an automatic, conditioned response. It had been a while since I actually had to put effort into suppressing it. Knowing where things would most likely head with Jace, I might have to recall them all again. But I want to keep them buried deep, deep down until then.

"Planeswalker..." I say quietly to myself. That's what Jace called it, right? "Is that what I am?"

I spend an extra long time in the bath, like I'm trying to wash away my troubles along with everything else. Despite that, Jace doesn't come knocking, asking if I'm done. It feels like I'm all alone in this big ol' apartment- that is, until I step out of the bathroom dressed back in my regular clothes, and the overwhelming smell of sweet-and-sour sauce greets me.

"D-did you get Chinese food?" I call as I wander back into the living room, drying my hair with a towel. There, sitting on the dining room table, are three gigantic paper sacks full of what I assume to be _way_ too much takeout.

"I... wasn't really sure what you liked." Jace, who's sitting on the couch with a couple glasses of wine and a rather expensive bottle of the stuff sitting on the coffee table, explains. "So I got a large variety of things."

"Like, what, the entire menu!?" I gasp, wandering over to the table and removing styrofoam box after styrofoam box of meat and rice and noodles. "What kind of crazy glutton do you take me for!?"

"It's not that! I just... like I said, I didn't know what you liked." He repeats, looking a little embarrassed.

"I sure hope you tipped whoever had to lug all this up here a pretty penny. Then again, if you have enough money to throw around to buy an entire buffet's worth of food, you have the money to be overwhelmingly considerate to whatever poor bastard had to deliver all this." I go about opening and closing the boxes until I settle on a container of what I assume is sesame chicken and a box of fried rice. "Honestly... I bet they laughed at you and thought you were prank-calling when you put in this massive order."

"Well, it all sounded really good..." Jace admits.

"You right about that, at least. Can't go wrong with Chinese takeout." I shrug, stopping at the couch. No way I'm joining him on there, sitting side by side by the guy who took me on this wild ride. I place my food down and sit on the floor. I eye the wine suspiciously. Even if offering me alcohol wasn't a nefarious way to get me drunk and helpless, it would still be unwise to drink it on an empty stomach. I might need it later, so I don't refuse when Jace offers it to me and set it down beside my boxes of food.

"...Well?" I ask, opening open the box of rice and breaking apart the chopsticks I'd picked up out of the bag along with my meal. "You've got my attention, now spill. Explain this whole mind-mage and planeswalker business before I change my mind."

"Well... where should I start?" Jace asks, looking as wildly confused and flustered as _I_ should be.

"I don't know. Just explain what you feel needs explaining, I guess." I shrug, mouth full of food at this point. "I'm all ears."

"Right..." Jace signs, rubbing the bridge of his nose before starting. "I guess I should begin by explaining mages and magic."

"That'd be best."

"Well, this world is one that actively suppresses the existence of magic. There's many people in this world who are probably more than capable of becoming mages and using magic, but since it's something that's been labeled as a myth and stuff of legend, people rarely are able to tap into their own magical ability. Emmara, the woman who owns the dress shop we visited, is one of the rare, lucky few who denied the rules of logic and science this world runs by and found her own magic power. We ran into each other early on in my stay here, and she sort of helped me adjust to this world."

"So you're _not_ from around here, huh?" I ask. "I always figured, though I had you pegged as an alien from outer space or something."

"No, nothing like that, but I am from a different plane of existence. The reason I keep coming back here, aside from Emmara being the only person I can really confide in, is that I find this place fascinating. A lot of the places I visit are places where magic is a common concept. This place, however, is an anomaly." Jace explains, looking exhausted just talking about it. "Magic does exist on this plane, but it's largely ignored. You people have moved beyond your dependence on magic, even if it would make your lives easier."

"Why do you keep coming back here?" I dare to pry. "If you're so used to places where magic and mages are the norm, why come here?"

"Well, the first time I wound up here, it was on complete accident. But, these days, I use it as a place to hide. I've been in hiding here for... a really, _really_ long time." Jace admits, looking up at the ceiling. "I think today was the first time in a very long while I actually ventured out into the Blind Eternities."

"Hiding? From _who_?"

"A lot of folks. It comes standard with my line of work. I'm an information broker of sorts, and I made one too many enemies. There are probably other planeswalkers besides me out there who would probably kill me on the spot if they found me. So, I figured, the last place they would look would be here, a place where magic is suppressed. So far, my assumptions have been correct." Jace pauses to shake his head and smooth back his hair, heaving the heaviest sigh. "It wasn't long before I started to become lonely. I mean, I was lonely before, but now that I'm more or less stuck here I feel it even more so. I tried to find people who might be able to sympathize with me and maybe travel with me. Maybe if I met a planeswalker here, they might help me get out of all the scraps I've gotten myself into."

"So... you were looking for a body guard?" I groan.

"More like a companion who wouldn't mind a little trouble every now and then..." Jace chuckles lightly. "I did with a lot of girls exactly what I did tonight- I'm ashamed to say. But all of them ended in failure, so I'd wipe their minds and send them on their way. To be honest I had started to become discouraged, and considered just leaving this plane and taking my chances but..." He pauses, casting a shy glance my way. It's my turn to heave a heavy sigh.

"...But then you met me, right?"

"Heh, exactly that..." Jace laughs guiltily. "I decided that, if I was wrong about you, that I'd leave this place on my own, possibly to my death. So I was extra careful. I wanted to make damn sure my hunch was correct this time. So I returned to that diner again and again and again, trying to sense if you were a planeswalker or mage or not based on our small, quick interactions. Over time I guess... I started to grow fond of you."

"Ugh, creepy..." I mutter almost instinctively under my breath. I cover my mouth, but the damage has been done. I strongly consider drinking the wine now.

"What? Is it really that creepy? To grow attached to the person who you're staking your very life? Not to mention... I mean, you are..." Jace pauses once again, his cheeks growing red. "Really beautiful."

"Phht, excuse me?" I snort. "Hey, why didn't you lay this stuff on thick when I was in fancy dress? Don't tell me that crap now, with a towel over my head while I'm dressed in clothes I probably didn't even wash."

"You put up a lot of walls. It made it difficult for me to even say that much when you _were_ dressed up. But... you are. I wouldn't lie about something like that."

"It's not that I think you're lying, I just don't believe you..." I mutter before shaking my head. "Whatever, moving away from how good my looks _apparently are_..."

"R-right!" Jace stammered. "The night when you confronted me about my powers, I figured I wouldn't get another shot like that again, so I took it. Which... pretty much leads us up to here."

"And now your fate rests in my hands." I sigh, leaning back and looking at the ceiling. "You really know how to put pressure on a girl, you know?"

"Sorry, that wasn't my intention..."

An awkward silence falls between us. I for one have no idea what to say. Is he expecting me to just throw my life away and go with him to different worlds? I know I'm a "planeswalker" now, but I have no idea if I can use magic. I don't want to leave the place that's familiar and normal to me, but at the same time... I can sympathize with Jace, at least, in knowing what it's like to feel alone and like you have nowhere else to go.

"In all honesty, part of me figured my plan wouldn't actually work." Jace suddenly speaks up.

"What do you mean?"

"Well... assumptions of you being a planeswalker aside, there was a chance you wouldn't have been able to travel into the blind eternities at all. In order to planeswalk, someone has to first awaken their 'spark'. It's usually something that gets ignited when you're in danger or stressed." He explains. "I mean, it really wasn't a smart move to have you being able to planeswalk dependent upon scaring you with talk of magic and whatnot."

"So you intended to freak me out enough where I'd leave this plane of existence?" I raise an eyebrow. "God, I don't know whether to feel sorry for you or to be really suspicious of you."

"I know it wasn't the best of ideas, but at the time I figured it was the only way..." Jace sighs, bowing his head apologetically. "...That being said, I wound up not having to force you to awaken your spark. It's already burning brightly inside of you, and you slipped into the Blind Eternities so effortlessly I..."

"What?" I groan, but part of me doesn't want him to finish. I don't want him to go there. I don't want him to remember.

I don't.

I _won't._

I just _can't_!

"Chandra... have you planeswalked before?"


	5. Shall We Be Off?

In in instant it's like I'm swept backward in time- back to three years ago, when I'd finally decided enough was enough and to end my relationship with Baral. I'd told him again and again that it was over, but he never seemed to take me seriously But whether or not he bought into my trying to tell him over and over that I was through, I was going to go ahead and make preparations for the inevitable (at least from my perspective anyway) fallout. And one of those things was removing my things from his apartment. I hardly spent much time over there anymore at that point, but a lot of my things were still stashed away there- kitchenware, clothes, books, and little things I wouldn't be able to replace.

But it's a real challenge to move your things out of the apartment of the guy who won't believe you when you say you're leaving him. And, at that point, Baral had begun to give in to bouts of violence more and more often, and I was sure moving my things out would set him off. So, for what little I had over there, it was a slow process of going over there with a single box and moving things out bit by bit, as troublesome as the process was.

I'd figured he'd never notice- I mean, it's not like he noticed a lot of things, like how I'd been spending more and more time away from him or that I hardly ever replied to his texts or, I don't know, that I told him it was over. But my personal drawer in his room being emptied and my toiletries going missing was something he'd somehow managed to pick up on, and to say it made him angry was an understatement (and to say it drove him to drink might have also been an understatement, too, while I'm at it).

He was crafty, though, I'll give him that. He waited for me to slink back to his apartment, thinking he was at work, with my little moving box. He waited for me to be one trip with my arms full of my things away from being free from him. He waited until my guard was down, when I'd gotten up the courage to turn on his radio so I had something to listen to and began to contemplate raiding his fridge one last time. And when I was there, distracted, vulnerable, so close to being finally done with him, he came stomping in, angry, yelling and reeking of liquor. I remember that the most: how strong the scent clung to him. In my fear and surprise I had wondered for just how long he'd been drinking before he stumbled in, roaring like a damn wild animal.

It's a moment in my life I try to forget- a moment in my life where, had fate not decided to crack a single, solitary smile at me for once, I might have possibly died. I shiver, my memory playing back the one scene I always, _always_ skip over. I don't want to see this, but I continue, ever the fool launching myself into the unfavorable unknown.

His potential staggering blood-alcohol content did nothing to stop him- hell, it probably made him even stronger. I hardly got done explaining what I was doing before he grabbed me and threw me to the floor. I don't remember what I ran into, but it must have been made of glass because I remember the shattering noise right before Baral loomed over me, looking down at me and yelling whatever the hell came to mind, probably. In that moment, he was more of a monster than a man, relying on his rage more than reason. And said reason he so readily cast aside would have dictated that he shouldn't attempt to commit homicide in his own apartment. And yet, there he was, crouched over me and putting every single muscle to work as he clutched at my throat.

I kicked and attempted to scream, but one action hardly amounted to anything seeing as I could hardly gasp for air let alone scream, and the other slowly began to become more and feeble the more oxygen deprived I got. And, as hazy as my vision began to get, blurring violently around the edges as my other senses dulled, I clearly remember Baral's eyes as he looked down at me. That thought alone is enough to make me want to vomit- that look of nothing but pure, animal-like rage and murder. If the fact he was doing a really spot-on job of killing me didn't terrify me, that glare certainly did. It will probably live with me until the day I die, for all I know.

"You're nothing, _bitch_." I remember him snarling as drool oozed from his mouth and splashed against my cheek, mingling with tears I had begun to shed. I remember his words so clearly, since they were a phrase he'd often used while he pulled my hair or grabbed my arm and pulled me back to him. He'd always whisper it, so that no one else but me would hear. "You're nothing without me, you hear? _Nothing_!"

Unable to flail my leg uselessly much less attempt to kick him, I thought how fucking awful it was that I was going to die in the very place I'd been trying to leave. I was going to die on the filthy floor of my ex's apartment, listening to my favorite radio station. If anything, it was a huge, fucking surprise I definitely didn't see coming. A twist in the sad, poorly-written plot known as my life, one could say.

Continuing along the same vein of huge, fucking surprises I definitely didn't see coming, though, one second I was being strangled to death by Baral, and the next I was suspended in what I _now_ know to be the "Blind Eternities". But at the time I figured it was a horrific hallucination concocted by my brain that was being deprived of oxygen. I even had a profound thought as I looked around at the somewhere-nowhere-everywhere expanse I had just... appeared in, wondering if I had made it into heaven. I was unaware I had done anything special like ignite a latent ability that had been sleeping inside me- or whatever odd nonsense- and just sort of rolled with it, figuring I was dead or about to die.

And now that I think about it, I was way too quick to just embrace the fact I was about to meet my maker for someone my age. That or I took my "not giving two fucks" attitude with me to the other side, as it seemed to me at the time.

But, with a surprised blink of my eyes, I found myself lying on my bed in my own apartment. I stared up at my ceiling, trying to make sense of what had happened- even thought there was hardly any "sense" in what had befallen me. I was being choked with intent to kill me one second, the next I was in my room, lazing around on my bed as if none of that had ever happened. It was such a surreal experience, I didn't know how to react... so I didn't. I lied around on that very bed for an entire day, just staring up at my ceiling and pausing only to call out of work and gaze blankly at my phone every time Baral called, which was often (once- sometimes twice an hour). I'd felt everything all at once when I thought I was going to die and accepted death in a surprisingly (or maybe disturbingly) calm manner. For a whole day, I lied around, unable to feel anything aside from confusion.

After that I decided to keep that memory locked away- to live my life like it had never happened and me and Baral didn't break up by him trying to strangle me and me somehow winding up in my room very much alive. I wanted to pretend it never happened- I wanted to move on. But then my fate stepped in, calling itself Jace Beleren and reaching it's way into my brain and pulling out every last detail I never ever wanted to revisit. Jace Beleren, that fucking miserable bastard...

"Chandra...?"

Oh, that's him now.

I turn to Jace, not sure how long I've been quietly sitting in front of my takeout, contemplating his question and taking a trip down memory lane I wasn't prepared for. Judging by how worried Jace looks, I was probably spacing out for a really, really long time.

"...You're crying."

 _Or_ he could be looking at me like that because I'm _crying_. Angrily, I snap back to life and begin to wipe at my eyes. I can feel my tears dampen my hand and I groan in frustration as I hide my face. No matter how much I don't want to cry in front of the guy that, up until 24 hours ago, was a complete stranger, I can't stop. He has unknowingly unleashed the waterworks and now is just staring at me, like he was no idea. He doesn't have a single clue he's unearthed the memory of the day that the old Chandra Nalaar died, and it pisses me off.

"Fuck off!" Are the first words I say to him, but of course I'm so overcome with emotion my words come out in sobs and hardly have any bite to them at all. Good job, me, he definitely isn't going to "fuck off" now. In fact, he's drawing closer, from what I can see between the cracks in my fingers and through tears.

"What? What's wrong?" He asks. His question about my well-being is so overwhelmingly innocent, it just makes me want to yell profanities at him more until he realizes _he's_ what's wrong with me. "...Was it something I said?"

"Yes!" I snap at first still hiding behind my hands as uncertainty overtakes me. "Well... no! I-I don't know!"

"I'm sorry... I don't really understand." Jace mutters. I have half the mind to call him an idiot, but I hold my tongue and focus on regaining my composure first. I don't want him to see me cry- if you let them see you cry, you lose, after all. I straighten up and take a long, deep breath and rub at my eyes one last time. My face is probably red and puffy and gives away that I was crying, but at least I won't let myself shed any more tears.

"I..." Already my vision blurs and my voice wavers slightly. _Don't you dare, self._ "I've planeswalked before... but at the time I had no idea what it was. I was more concerned about the fact I was almost killed before it happened. I'm sure you felt it, with all your weird world-hopping nonsense: the feeling of emptiness when you have a brush with death. I tried so hard to forget it until today..."

I jump in surprise as I feel Jace run a finger along my cheek, just below my eye. Seems he's caught a tear and I've lost the battle I'd been fighting with my pride.

"It's all your fault, you know!? I could have gone my entire life just accepting that maybe what I'd seen had been some crazy fever dream!" I groan, jerking my face away from his hand as I wipe at my tears myself. He touches me like I'm so damn fragile- like I'll break at any second- and I hate it! "But you just _had_ to force your way into my life and into my business! I mean, I know you're lonely and all that, but see things from my perspective for a change!"

"Sorry..."

"God dammit, stop saying you're sorry!" I shout, and he looks back at me with an expression that screams perplexed- as he rightfully should be, since I'm just as confused, masking my anger with the volume of my voice. I haven't the slightest clue what I should do, what I mean to him or what he means to me. He's a stranger who bothered me at the diner all the time, that's who he is at a base level and that's what he should have stayed! He should have just left me alone... I think...

"Chandra..."

"Shut up..."

"No." I look up, semi-shocked he's showing something resembling a backbone, and for a second he looks incredibly determined with his gaze locked with mine. Whatever he has to say has got to be mighty important... or at least I figure until he loses composure, looking away and clearing his throat. I go from being legitimately interested to hardly giving a shit so fast, I fear I might suffer whiplash.

"Better hurry up with whatever is so damn important. You're losing me fast." I grumble. Jace perks up and immediately begins stumbling over his words, trying and failing several times to reach for the right word. "Sometime today would be nice..."

"Right, fine!" Jace practically exclaims, looking flustered beyond belief. "I need to know, Chandra... I know the first time you planeswalked wasn't at all pleasant, but I'm asking you if you could do it again. I'm... asking you if you want to travel the multiverse with me."

"And, let me guess, if I say 'no' you're just going to go off on your own and probably get killed, right?" I ask, rubbing at my eyes one last time. It seems my tears have finally run dry- at least, for now, anyway. Who knows what else this creep is going to dredge up to make me cry in front of him again. Jace is quiet for a moment before looking at the ground ashamedly and nods. "God, so young and I'm already someone's last hope. Quite the burden, I must say."

"Please, Chandra, this is serious!" Jace speaks urgently. I laugh belligerently before answering, looking back at his look of desperation. No one has ever looked at me like this before, and I have to look away. He looks back at me like I'm some god holding his life in his hands.

"I _know_ it's serious, Jace, but think about what you're asking me! Think about the burden you're putting on me!" I snap. "I'm a fucking nobody- just a diner waitress. I was never meant for anything important, or to be this important to someone! Up until today I was nobody special and I was okay with that! And now... now I'm some magical person, a 'planeswalker' and the only thing standing between you and death. To go from being a nobody to being your everything is... _terrifying_."

"...If it makes you feel any better, should you chose not to come with me, I'll erase you're memories." Jace offers up. "You can go back to living your life without knowledge of magic, or planeswalkers... or me."

"Why so accommodating _now_? I mean, a while ago you were going to set me free into the world with these memories if I didn't help you." I glare back at him. "What triggered this change of heart, huh?"

"It's like you said: I failed to take your feelings into account. I've lived my life altering the memories of people to get by, and I've lived so selfishly that when I finally found you I wanted to keep you here. I've wanted you so badly, Chandra..." He pauses, looking as if he were in some kind of pain. "But I never stopped to consider you might not need me as badly as I do you. Hell, you might need me like you need a kick in the teeth."

"That's just what I was- hey!" I snap. "Did you just read my mind!?"

"Sorry, old habits die hard, I guess."

"If that's the case, I do have a habit of punching people in the face when they piss me off."

"Sorry! Sorry! It won't happen again!" Jace gasps as he guards his face.

"It had better not." I say, waiting for him to put his guard down before pressing forward suddenly, making him jump. "I'm ready and willing to fly off the handle at this point."

"I-I'll keep that in mind." Jace chuckles nervously, slowly going back to relaxing. "No more mind tricks, I promise."

"Good..."

"Then, I'll just cut to the chase." He mutters before looking me dead in the eye once more. "Will you... come away with me and discover different worlds? Will you travel with me, and escape this place that binds you?"

I open my mouth immediately but nothing comes out. I'm so sure I have an answer on the tip of my tongue, but the moment I go to answer, my words dry up. I pull away, eyes cast down onto the floor. What do I want exactly? In the beginning I had been so sure- hand on the doorknob, ready to leave all this madness behind. But now... now I can't even summon up a "yes" or a "no". Just empty, awkward silence. Right when I really, truly needed to summon up something, I can't

"I understand if you don't want to do this. It's an awfully big decision to have to make last minute." Jace shrugs sadly as he rises to his feet. I watch, still completely silent, as he walks all the way to the front door. He seems not at all surprised... but devastated. "I'll drive you home."

"Wait a second!" I call out to him from my spot on the floor. He freezes, hand on the doorknob, but doesn't look back. "Please... I can't make this kind of decision right on the spot, you're right about that. So... just give me tonight to think about it."

"Then let me-"

"It's way too late to drive anywhere." I cut him off again, refusing to look at him as he turns around, no doubt a stupid look of excitement on his face. "I don't want to go home alone, not tonight. If I do that, I'll probably get zero sleep and won't be able to think clearly. No, I think I'll stay here for the night."

"Chandra... don't you think that's a little... you know..." I look up to find Jace is now blushing like a fool, an uncomfortable grin on his face.

"What do you mean a little... _oh my god_ , I meant I'd take the couch or a guest bedroom- you have one of those right, in a ritzy place like this?!" I shout. "Like hell I'll share a room with you, much less a bed, so don't you dare get any skeevy thoughts!"

"I-I wasn't-"

"Like hell you weren't, perv! I see that blush on your cheeks, you thought I meant you were going to score tonight! Ridiculous, to think I actually felt a little sorry for you..."

I hope that, regardless of what I decide after tonight, that Jace Beleren's penis comes clean off somehow.

* * *

I said I wouldn't have been able to sleep in my own apartment, but even with knowing I'm not alone despite having my own room (Jace did, in fact, have a guest bedroom handy. Which is odd, since I can't imagine who the hell he'd have sleep there) I can't sleep a wink. I just stare up at the ceiling, waiting for exhaustion to take over. I've memorized the bumps and patterns right above me, though, at this point, and sleep has continued to elude me. I can't even bear to keep my eyes closed in attempts to will myself to rest.

Minutes and then hours pass me by as I stare up into nothingness before I groan in frustration and roll out of bed. How can I possibly think about sleeping when the life of another person depends on my answer? Even if I'll forget everything I've learned today, even if I can totally forget Jace and our date, planeswalkers and magic, I'd still have to make the conscious decision to give all of that up- now, when things in my life had started to make a little bit of sense.

I hate this. I hate it so much!

I give up on sleeping- I give up on my bed and the guest bedroom entirely and wander out into the hall. Jace's apartment seems a lot different at night with all of the lights out. It seems eerie in a way, and it sends a shiver up my spine. Never have I been one to admit I'm afraid of the dark- I mean, I'm an adult. There's hardly the threat of monsters or ghosts now that I'm older, wiser and jaded by reality. It's just how... _alone_ this place makes me feel.

On the regular, I usually crave solitude. I lock myself in my apartment for the most part, away from everyone, and at work all I want to do is escape. I normally don't mind being alone but here, in Jace's dark, quiet apartment, I want someone to hold, as corny as it sounds.

Maybe if I stuff my face with the leftover Chinese food, maybe I'll forget about this feeling of malcontent. Maybe a little food is what will help me finally get a little shuteye. Tempted by the thought of cold takeout, I wander down the dark hallway, all the way until I arrive at the corridor with the window that looks out at the ocean. Once more, I'm drawn toward the view, which is now easier to see now, with the lack of light.

I can differentiate between the sky and ocean now, lightly lit by the moon hanging above in the sky. And, off in the distance, I can see clouds hanging above the water, jolts of lightening lighting up the dark masses crawling along the horizon. The view seems so vast, and even now, where it doesn't seem like I'm looking out into black nothing, it feels like the endless ocean and sprawling night sky could swallow me up.

If just the view of the ocean can make me feel so small, the thought that there are worlds beyond this one- other huge, seemingly-endless oceans waiting for me- makes me feel even smaller, even more insignificant. It's conversely proportional to how Jace makes me feel- like I'm much more important than I think I am and that what I decide will matter. I sigh as I rest my head against the window, fogging up the glass.

"What am I even doing?" I mutter to myself. I have to ask, but I can't seem to fathom an answer. What _am_ I doing- aside from staring out into the ocean mindlessly? What direction do I take from here?

I feel something warm being draped over my shoulders, pulling me from my thoughts and drawing a surprised yelp from my throat. I turn around quickly to find Jace lurking behind me, holding a sheet that, I assume, was meant to be placed over my shoulders.

"God! Don't sneak up on my like that, creeper!" I groan.

"Sorry..." He apologizes, rubbing the back of his neck. "I just... figured you were cold, just standing there like that."

"Would it have killed you to make your presence known? Or are you not through with trying to scare me after all?" I ask, wrinkling my nose in displeasure and crossing my arms.

"I-I wasn't-!" Jace begins to protest before I snatch the sheet away from him and walk over to the wall opposite the window.

"So, you couldn't sleep either, I'm guessing?" I ask, leaning up against the wall. He looks down at me, like I've asked him a complicated question he couldn't possibly answer. What? Should I speak slower? Me need use less big words? "Well?"

"Yeah, more or less. I don't normally sleep that much, so I figured I'd take a walk or something." Jace shrugged, looking like he's prepared to defend himself. Am I really that threatening a person? "I walked out of my bedroom and saw you, so I figured I'd grab you something. I mean... you didn't look all that comfortable."

"I'm fine, really, but thanks. I was more lost in my own thoughts than anything else." I sigh, wrapping the sheet around me. "I mean, do you blame me? I have a lot to think about."

"Sorry... for being such a burden." For the millionth time, Jace apologizes. He's like a broken record, always seeking to be forgiven, even for little things. It's like that's all he can think to say to me- not like he knows me enough to make decent conversation. Not that _I_ know him well enough to make decent conversation with him without snapping or snarling. It seems we're both on opposite ends of the spectrum in that case.

"It's not your fault, I'm the one who can't make up her mind..." I muttered, sliding down the wall until my butt hits the floor. I draw up my legs and rest my chin on my knees, eyes focused on the horizon of dark waters and black sky. "It's not every day I have to make big decisions like this. Usually it doesn't get any more complicated than what I'm going to wear or what flavor of instant ramen I want to make."

"There's really nothing I can offer up at this point, unfortunately." Jace said regrettably. "At least, nothing that wasn't incredibly biased. Of course, I'd rather live than go to my death, even if it was with someone who hates my guts."

"Ha, ha, very funny." I roll my eyes. "I don't _hate_ you. I mean, you're not my favorite- you think for yourself a whole lot and don't think about much else. You're awkward and definitely not the kind of guy I'd willingly spend my time with... but I don't _hate_ you."

"Oh, wow, that makes me feel all kinds of warm and fuzzy." Jace chuckled sarcastically. "Thanks."

"..." I look up at him, narrowing my eyes. "Come sit down here, would you?"

"W-what?" Jace asks in a flustered tone. The way he acts, I might as well have asked him for sex or something. I guess I can add "possible hapless virgin" to my list of things that make Jace not my favorite kind of person.

"I said sit here with me, alright? I hate it when people look down at me when they speak!" I groan, smacking the ground next to me. "If you're going to stay up with me and talk, I don't want to have to look up at you like this the entire time!"

"You... wouldn't mind?" Jace questions cautiously. "Staying up and talking with me, I mean..."

"Who else could I possibly talk to?" I murmur. "If I'm going to stay up, I'd rather not stay up alone. You're not my usual choice of company, but right now you're my only choice. There's no one else I can talk to about this and no one I can call. You're all I've got right now, so either pop a squat or scram."

"If you insist..." Jace finally gives as he walks over and slowly sits himself next to me. Silence falls between us for a few minutes, dragging by long enough to feel like hours as we stare off into the distance. Jace is slumped over, fingers brushing against the floor with his legs sprawled outward. He seems comfortable- at peace somehow. I can't help but feel a little jealous.

"...So..." I begin, drawing circles on the ground with my finger. "What sorts of places have you planeswalked to?"

"What sorts of places?"

"Yeah, all those different worlds you visited. What were they like?" I question. "I mean, you said this world is different from all the others- how we don't believe in magic and all that. So are the other worlds filled with that sort of thing?"

Jace's face lights up as he begins to speak- the first time I think I've seen him genuinely happy. It's strange, how it manages to warm my heart as well.

"Oh yeah. Almost everywhere I've visited before this one had magic- all types of mages besides me who could all do amazing things. They can summon magical creatures, heal wounds, even raise the dead- you name it, there's probably someone out in the multiverse who can do it." He pauses, looking away from me and out into the distance shyly. "And... if you decide to come with me, we'll probably find out what kind of mage you are, too."

"Hm, really..." I gaze down at my hands, clenching and unclenching them. "What kind of mage do you think I am?"

"One of rudeness, maybe?" Jace throws out jokingly. I don't take very kind to it, and glare back at him before punching him in the arm. "Ow! Hey, it was a joke."

"Keep making jokes like that and you're on the fast track to getting a _real_ ass kicking." I threaten.

"R-right, sorry." He stammers. "Really, there's no telling for sure what sort of mage a person is, especially on this plane. It's so devoid of magic, it's near impossible to tell. All you're life, you've been subconsciously taught that magic doesn't exist, so it would be hard to discover your talents here."

"And mythical creatures- are there any of those?"

"Oh, there are plenty, trust me." Jace chuckled. "Sea monsters, vampires, angels, devils, elves- the sky's the limit. Anything you can pull out of a myth or a fairytale probably exists somewhere."

"Even dragons?" I ask, maybe with a little too much enthusiasm.

" _Especially_ dragons! There are even planes where dragons are about as common as birds." Jace smiled. "I take it you'd want to visit a place like that?"

"Well, yeah, sure! I... I mean, if I decide I want to go at all." I mumble, feeling my cheeks grow warm. Ever since I was a little girl I've always been fascinated by stories like that- dragons, knights, magical creatures, spells, curses- you name it. I mean, my interests eventually got snuffed out by reality and apathy once I started getting older, but hearing those places and those creatures really do exist somewhere I can't help but act a fool.

"Well, you have all night to decide." Jace assures me. "Ask me anything you like until then, I'm an open book."

"Wow, you really think I'm that interested, huh?"

"Oh, I don't think, I _know_." Jace smirks before I punch him in the arm again. "Ow! Hey, watch it!"

"It's your own fault- I warned you about reading my mind." I tell him with a smirk. "Jeeze, for a mind-mage, you don't do a lot of thinking yourself."

* * *

I wake up to dim light and a sore back. I open my eyes to the same ocean view I'd fallen asleep to sometime during the night, now lit by the light of early morning. For a second I'm confused- wondering where I am and why- before I remember. Jace and I had sat in his hallway, talking about all the places he visited until I'd fallen asleep. For the first time since we met at the diner, all those long, boring nights ago, we actually had a conversation. He weaved all these interesting stories, a smile on his face, and I listened, readying my next volley of questions. We laughed a lot, like an ordinary couple, I punched him in the arm to keep it from totally seeming that way...

Jace. Where is Jace? I look around, but he's nowhere to be seen, at least not in the hallway. Slowly, and groggily I stand up and look around, not sure exactly where to start. So I just start peering into rooms, calling his name.

"Jace? Where are you?" I call, peering into what I figure to be his room. "I swear, if you're hiding somewhere, I'm going to punch you in the schnoz!"

He isn't anywhere in the bedroom- the bed is even neatly made. Everything is organized and clean, as if he hadn't attempted to sleep in it the night before.

"Jace?"

Not in the bathroom.

"Jace!?"

Not asleep in the guest bedroom.

"Jace!? Where are you!?"

Not in the laundry room, the living room or the dining room. The bags of Chinese from the night before are gone. The glasses of wine and the mugs of coffee are gone. Even the dress I'd worn the night before was gone. Everything is neat and clean, like a show home.

"...Could... he have...?" I wonder to myself. A feeling of dread brews in my gut as my nerves begin to build. It's just an assumption, but given how thoroughly clean the place looks I start to assume that maybe... Jace left while I was asleep- and not just the apartment. Maybe I had made too big a deal about how much of a burden choosing to stay here or go with him was. Maybe, to spare me, he had planeswalked away before I even had a chance to make a decision.

I'm alone again. Alone, just like I'd always wanted... _right_?

"...Idiot... Don't go making decisions for yourself like that..." I mutter, my eyes beginning to burn as my vision blurs. "You were supposed to wait for me to choose... you were supposed to wait..."

I hate him.

"You were the only person who might have understood me..."

He forced me into a date and forced all this unwanted knowledge upon me.

"My life... was finally starting to make sense... like maybe I could find somewhere I really... fucking belonged..."

He's a selfish bastard.

"I... I wanted to go with you, dammit!"

I _hate him_!

"I wanted to leave with you!"

"Chandra?"

I gasp as I look up, coming to find Jace standing in the doorway. He looks back at me, a combination of worry and confusion in his eyes- at least, from what I can make out through the tears.

"...Where... did you...?"

"I handed off your dress to Emmara. She lives in this building, so I figured I could give it to her before she went back to the city for work... that and I gave her a lot of the Chinese. There's no way I could have eaten all of it." Jace explains as he walks in. Hiding my face in my hands, I can hear him as his footsteps draw closer. "You're crying, what's wrong?"

"I'm not crying, asshole!" I snap, pushing him away once he draws too close. "I'm fine, you don't have to bother. I'm not crying!"

He's here- right here. Jace still hasn't left. I'm embarrassed beyond belief... but I'm relieved beyond measure.

"What? Next you're going to tell me you just have something in your eyes?" Jace questions, sounding a little annoyed- probably from being pushed.

"What... did I say about the... damn mind reading?" I mumble, trying my hardest not to sob.

"That wasn't mind reading, just intuition." Jace says with a light chuckle. "Sorry, though... I have a sinking suspicion I'm the reason you're crying."

"Forget it, I'm fine... really." I assure him wiping my eyes so I can look back at him without any visible tears. "I just..."

"Just what?"

"I was thinking about that one plane you were telling me about- the one full of dragons?" I begin. "It sounds like a place I'd really like to visit."

* * *

" _AUGH_!" Elspeth cries just as I begin to hang up my uniform. I expected this sort of thing, but she's waited until the last minute to overreact. The entire shift she seemed like nothing was wrong and treated it like any other day. The only time she acted at all out of line was when Jace stopped by for the usual coffee, and she made all sorts of lewd comments simply because our conversation lasted for more than a couple of seconds.

"Well, that's a unique send off right there." I joke as she runs over, throwing her arms around me.

"You're leaving me to go elope with your favorite customer! The night shift won't be the same without you!" She cries. I'd put in my two weeks notice a short while back, and had really hoped Elspeth wouldn't hear about it. But, unfortunately, she wound up being the first, so my final weeks working the night shift at the diner were full of her making all sorts of accusations and observations about the date I'd had with Jace.

Of course, I really hadn't handled the situation well at all, and slipped up in telling her I'd spent the night at his apartment the night of our date and my reason for leaving because I intended to "go traveling" with him. This, to good ol' Els, added up to me and him having some sort of crazy, all night sex romp that had us deciding to run away together to be lovers in some distant country. She was sure to romanticize every detail about the date she didn't even go on. I swear, if she ever feels like she needs an out from the late-night-dining industry, she could probably go for a career in romance novels.

"Okay, two things- one, if you call it 'eloping' one more time, I'm punching you in the boob!" I threaten through clenched teeth. "And two... you are crushing my ribs, let me go!"

"Oh, honey, you can call it whatever you want but it's plainly obvious you two fell in love all those nights ago." Elspeth smirks as she lets me go, allowing me to breath normally once more. "I see the way you two look at one another whenever he comes in for coffee! You seem so much brighter and happier now, it _has_ to be love!"

"Sure, whatever you say, Sherlock." I roll me eyes, slipping on my jacket.

"I only wish is that he didn't have to take you so far away so that you two can strengthen your romance." Elspeth continues like I hadn't even spoke. "He made sweet, passionate love to you, and now he's going to steal you away from me!"

"I swear to god, do you ever hear yourself speak?"

"Now I'm going to be cooped up in here every night with nothing but a bunch of sweaty cooks and smelly bums!" She dramatically sighs.

"You know, I bet all those sweaty cooks and smelly bums can _hear you_." I mention, but she hardly seems phased. "Look, just ask the boss to consider bringing on a new girl when he starts looking for new hires. With any luck, you won't be alone for long."

"I guess that's true... I'm still going to miss you, though." Elspeth groans. "But... I'm glad you finally found someone. I was starting to worry you were never going to find a guy after Baral. Jace is a very lucky guy."

"Elspeth, I've told you a thousand times, our relationship isn't like-" I begin before my phone starts to ring in my pocket. I don't have to answer, I know who it is. I just let it ring- he can wait a few minutes more.

"Just promise me you'll invite me to the wedding!"

"Elspeth..."

"Oh! And maybe when you two have kids, I could be their godmother?"

" _Elspeth_ , oh my _god_!" I mutter loudly.

"I'm going to miss you." Almost out of nowhere, Elspeth's tone changes, and she looks back at me sadly. "Just promise me you'll keep in touch and try visiting every once in a while."

I chuckle as I reach out, patting her on the head like a dog.

"I promise. And... maybe when I come back, I'll have something important to tell you." I assure her with a smile.

"Ooh! Like how you and Jace are going to get engaged?" Elspeth wiggles her eyebrows as I furrow mine and begin to head for the door.

" _Bye_ , Els." I groan as I leave, but with a smile.

"Don't forget about me!" She calls to my back. I chuckle to myself as I step out into the night. If there's one thing I'm going to remember, it probably is going to be Elspeth.

"So... are you ready?" I turn to my side, coming to find Jace pushing himself off of the back wall of the diner. He's wearing the most ridiculous outfit, like he's fully prepared to go midnight LARPing. Unable to hold back a snort I turn around, trying to choke back the laughter. "...What?"

"Nothing, nothing, I just... that outfit..." I chuckle, holding my sides that have now begun to ache. I can hear Jace groan at my back, but I don't care.

"Look, it's not all that ridiculous, trust me." He attempts to convince me.

"Yeah, sure, whatever you say." I laugh, slowly turning back around and attempting not to crack up a second time. "...nice cloak by the way."

"I really should have expected this." Jace sighs heavily as he tosses me a backpack that's better suited for camping. He's wearing a similar one, filled with essentials we had decided were necessary to bring along. "You're going to feel really silly when you're the only one in a t-shirt and jeans, trust me."

"Then I'll just find something more suitable to wear." I shrug. "I was thinking _chainmail_."

"Whatever suits your fancy, I guess." Jace shakes his head. "But we should really head off before your friend decides to come out and give you one last goodbye."

"Riiiight. I'd rather be dead than be seen with you in that ridiculous getup." Jace opens his mouth to protests, but thinks better of it and instead follows after me as I begin to walk away. I bet no matter where we go, his outfit is going to look incredibly odd.

"So, I was thinking, there's a plane made almost entirely out of metal- maybe you'd like to visit there first?"

"No way, Beleren. You promised me dragons, so we're gonna go see dragons."

"Alright, fine, dragons it is. So long as you don't complain about nearly getting burned to a crisp."

"So long as _you_ don't complain about being a human shield."

"I _might_ actually have some complaints regarding that."

"Too bad, loser. Now... lead the way."


End file.
